Drown Me in Amber
by Sesshochan1
Summary: A HMDScute fic. Griffin is bored and uninterested in life until he meets some new friends. What will he do when his dark past comes back to haunt him and can he find love despite his age... Btw, this summary sucks, don't judge it on this please. R&R pls!
1. Vestige

Here is chapter one! This fic started in the Ushi No Tane forums and is complete, I just have to edit the chapters before I post them all! I put alot of soul and hard work into this fanfic, so I really hope you enjoy it!

It's going to be 23 chapters long : )

Oh, yes... please don't judge it by the first chapter... it's gets ALOT darker and more mature as it goes along... there is lots of violence, suggestive material and really bad words. :D You have been warned.

Please review and tell me what you think! 3

**Drown Me in Amber**

**Chapter 1 - ****Vestige**

Professor Carter was hanging onto the doorknob, swinging back and forth with a huge smile on his broad red face. Griffin watched him from across the bar, smiling slightly.

"And…. _Hic_… I STILL think that this place… _erp_… Tops them all, old boy!" Carter shouted from across the room, his spectacles dangling from one ear. The professor had stayed late tonight and consumed a total of thirteen drinks. Griffin had counted. He was still waiting for someone to top the record of fifty drinks in a single night.

"Thanks, Carter. Sure you don't need any help gettin' home tonight?" Griffin offered. His voice was mild and low with a somewhat husky tone. Carter smiled and waved messily, still hanging on the doorknob and teetering back and forth. Beside Griffin, Muffy was watched the drunken Professor with a furrowed brow. Her long and healthy blonde hair spilled over her shoulders as she polished a shot glass while leaning against the wall.

Carter slammed the door and everything became silent at once. Griffin stroked his mustache for a moment and then set about cleaning up the bar.

"I hate it when customers get plastered and stay past closing hours." Muffy said exasperatedly as she stepped over to the front door and locked it with a sense of finality. Griffin laughed quietly.

"I've owned this place for thirteen years now… I'm used to that kinda thing…" He murmured, placing the newly cleaned glasses below the bar. Muffy flashed him a half smile and put her hands on her hips.

"You make yourself sound older than you are with that tone." Her green eyes sparkled with humor. Griffin laughed again and looked up at her.

"News flash, Muffy. I _am_ old." He moved past her and opened the door to the back room.

"Thirty-eight isn't _that_ old." She remarked, walking through the open door. Griffin shut off the lights behind him. He looked back at his bar.

The dark lavender light had cast the dusty bottles in a murky glow. Beyond the dark walls, pale moonlight shone in from the naked window. He looked over everything once more, then shut the door behind him.

The room in which they both entered was Griffin's bedroom. The room was sparse, and had two windows against the back wall. There was an old wooden table with two chairs around it, a bed, on top of which Muffy had taken a seat, and a bedside table. On top of the bedside table there was an old radio and a few old photographs in cracked frames. There was a door leading to the bathroom and a ladder leading to the loft, which served as Muffy's room. In the corner of the room, nearly forgotten and covered in dust was a sleepy old guitar.

"Are you gonna take a bath first?" Muffy flopped down on Griffin's bed and turned the radio on. Static coughed out of the old speakers, followed up by the garble of various radio signals spinning by as Muffy turned the knob. She settled on a station and put the radio back down on the desk.

"I think I'll wait until tomorrow morning." He spoke, not really thinking about what he said. He was staring over at his old guitar. It had been awhile since he'd last played it… and it was most likely painfully out of tune. Muffy caught him staring at the guitar.

"Ooh, are you gonna play?" She said, rolling over onto her stomach and propping herself up onto her elbows. He didn't look up but raised an eyebrow. He considered the thought.  
The radio chattered away from across the room and Griffin suddenly became aware of it. The announcer's ridiculously fast voice blared out.

_"Well, that was 'I just gotta dance' by Ruby Rhapsody we just heard. Up next we got an oldie, but a goody! It's 'Drown me in Amber' from Marine Jazz."_

Griffin's heart skipped a beat as he heard what the announcer said. He sprang up from his chair and walked hurriedly across the room as the all too familiar intro cut into the air.

_"Hey my love, it's you and me, the wanderin' dark and the salty sea…" _

Griffin switched the radio off with a snap. Muffy frowned.

"Heey! I like that song! Why'd you turn it off?" Griffin shooed her off his bed gently.

"I _don't_ like that song, that's why." He retorted, plucking her long blonde hairs off of his coverlet. Muffy looked ruffled.

"You don't even remember what today is, do you?" She crossed her arms and looked away. Griffin froze for a moment and scrutinized his memory for what today could possibly mark.

"Uhhh…. The day before the cooking festival?" He guessed. Muffy scoffed.

"Well, yeah, but that's not what I was thinking of." She continued on. "I started working here a year ago today, don't you remember?"

The memory snapped back into his head with a sudden vividness.

"Oh, of course!" He recalled. He looked up at her and gave a weak smile. "It's already been that long?"

The image of a skinny blonde girl dripping with rain water dragging herself into his bar late one night came back clearly into his mind. He remembered serving her a drink or two. She couldn't hold her liquor at all. After only a few minutes she was crying all over herself.

_"How could he just dump me like that!?" _She had wailed. The silly little girl had run away from her problems and her heartbreak in search of a new life and only made it to his bar, soaking wet and coming down with a cold. Griffin's sense of morality would not allow an innocent girl to go out on her own, weak and distraught into the night.

_"I've been where you are, Muffy."_ He'd said to her. _"I understand…"_ He wasn't lying, either.

So he'd put her up for the night. Just one night.

"And here she is a year later." He laughed softly to himself. Muffy watched Griffin thinking.

"Hey, I'm trying to reminiscence, here!" She tried to get his attention for a few moments, then waved him off. "Well, I'm going to go take a bath if you're not going to." She walked away and disappeared into the bathroom.

"I'm not complaining…" Griffin said to himself. "Muffy's a good worker. Little bit silly, yeah. But all women are a little bit silly." He lay back on his bed and stared intently at the ceiling. His whole body felt heavy and worn out.

Day after day was the same.  
_You'll be here until you die, Griffin. You might even die in this bed. _The darker part of his mind whispered. _You're gonna die alone in this musty old bed_

He sighed deeply. This is what it is to get older. Eventually his eyes got heavy and he began to drift off.

"Stupid guitar…" He yawned. "Stupid… Radio…"

--

"I don't see why we have to go." Griffin protested, fixing his appearance in the mirror.

"Because it's gonna be fun… and free food, come on!" Muffy teased her silky hair with her brush.

"Oh, so you want to eat Karen's delicious cooking, do you?" Griffin playfully posed. Muffy looked momentarily sick.

"We can always avoid what she enters." She shrugged. "Come on, let's goooo!" She yanked on Griffin's wrist.

"Ok, Ok." He conceded. The two stepped out into the brilliant spring sunlight. The fragrant smell of flowers hung on the air. Griffin saw people assembling at the beach in the distance. It had been a while since he'd been out in such nice weather. He locked the door and followed behind Muffy who was bouncing along and chattering away.

"You just want to go to see if you can meet a guy who can cook." Griffin teased her. She didn't meet his eye but smiled.

"That's not true." She chirped. They made their way down the sunny slope and past a very odd house. It was fenced off and a huge conductor was radiating electricity. Test tubes and wild looking plants in vats surrounded the metal building. The mad scientist Daryl lived there. He always came into the bar very late at night and muttered to himself while he drank his drink.

The two passed by deep, clear Turtle Pond. Fish darted beneath the cool surface and several trees shaded it. The sun was high and sparkling in the vast blue sky.

"It's hot…" Muffy fanned herself as they neared the shore. "Oh, they've already started setting up."

Down in the sand there were kitchen stations set up. The Mayor Thomas was setting mats and markers on a long table that was reserved for the entrant's dishes. Flags, advertisements and signs were posted up all around the beach area and the bustling villagers were all chatting merrily and looking excitable. As Griffin and Muffy stepped into the sand and towards the collection of villagers Griffin saw the Gourmet, a corpulent blonde man who was to be the judge, talking with a worried look to Karen, a girl from the neighboring town. She was looking very concerned. Soon after he'd finished speaking her expression turned rageful.

"What do you mean, 'makes people sick!?'" Griffin heard her shout at the Gourmet, who cringed. Griffin laughed and turned away, looking around at the scenery. He saw some people who often came into the bar and waved amiably in their direction. Suddenly he felt Muffy grasp his arm and breathed in a bit sharply.

"Who is that?" She breathed, enraptured. Griffin followed her pointed finger and saw a pretty girl with brown hair chatting animatedly to someone. She wore a stylish orange and white shirt with a small green apron around her hips. He stared at her for a moment.

"I don't know… I've never seen her around here before." He told her. Muffy looked up at him.

"What? Who're you talking about? _I'm_ talking about that cute guy! Can't you see him, talking to that girl over there?"

Griffin looked back towards the girl and noticed that she had been talking to a man that resembled her slightly. He had a very clear and honest face. Muffy was pointing at him with a jubiliant smile on her face.

"I haven't ever seen him eith-" Muffy grabbed his arm again and started pulling Griffin towards the boy and girl. "Hey, what are you doing?"

"Let's go talk to them!" She sounded thrilled. Griffin had no choice but to comply. He regained control of his own arm and walked a few paces behind Muffy, who was nearly sprinting.

"Hi!" She greeted the boy in her most cheerful voice. He stopped talking to the girl beside him and looked over to see Muffy. "I've never seen you around here before, Mr…" She gestured, waiting for his name.

"Oh, Akira. I'm Akira." The boy turned to face Muffy. The girl he'd been speaking with looked Muffy over for a second, smiling. Griffin could hear Akira and Muffy talking, but he couldn't really focus on what they were saying. She turned to face Griffin and gave him another smile. Griffin felt a little awkward.

"Hey." He raised his hand in a small wave.

"We come from Mineral Town." He heard Akira tell Muffy. "We own a farm there."

The girl grinned again and held out her hand with confidence.

"I'm Haru." She told him as he took her hand and gave it a shake.

"Name's Griffin." He followed up.

"So, how long have you and your wife been farmers?" Muffy questioned Akira. Griffin nearly laughed and wondered if Muffy knew how obvious she was being. Luckily, Akira laughed a bit as well.

"Oh, this is my sister, not my wife. We've been at it for… oh… nearly a year now, I think. It's a busy life." Akira explained.

"Pleasure to meet you!" Muffy shook Haru's hand. Griffin knew Muffy would be sweet to her now that she knew Haru wasn't a threat to her man-hunting prospects.

As the two girls began to chat away, a voice rang out across the noisy beach. The short mayor, with megaphone in hand had stood up on a chair and was speaking to the crowd.

"Hello, everyone!! Hello! Welcome, to the Forget-Me-Not Valley annual cooking festival!" There was a rippling of cheers across the crowd followed by some half-hearted applause. "This contest is going to be graciously judged by the world famous Gourmet!"

There was another round of weak applause in which the Gourmet looked smug and lifted his hands to show everyone where he stood. "And as you all know, any leftover food will be available for sampling after the contest is over. The time to begin is almost upon us, but first I have a bit of bad news. One of our contestants has decided to forfeit for today, leaving an open space for anyone who wishes to compete last minute. If you wish to join at anytime, please say so!" He waited for a moment. Griffin could see Karen looking teary-eyed and spiteful and wondered if she had forfeited or if it had been a safety issue that caused her to step down.

"Well... now the Gourmet will announce this year's theme…" The Mayor handed the megaphone over to the bulging Gourmet. With what looked like a lot of struggle, the Gourmet eventually stood up on the chair and cleared his throat.

"Today's theme will be mixer foods! Please, everyone do you best to make delicious drinks for me, today!" The Gourmet licked his lips with gusto and beamed out across the crowds. "Okay… Begin!" He shouted. Ruby, the owner of the Inner Inn which neighbored Griffin's bar, shot forward to her station. Behind her, Celia the young woman who worked at the vegetable farm was in a flurry to get cooking. Ann, the daughter of the inn at Mineral Town and Flora, Carter's frizzy haired and bespectacled assistant, were working furiously chopping up ingredients.

Muffy turned to Griffin.

"Hey, Griffin, you should enter! You could beat all these guys with your eyes closed." Muffy encouraged him. She turned to Haru and Akira. "He's really fantastic at making drinks. He owns the 'Blue Bar' here in the valley." She assured them. They looked impressed. "That's where I work." She added on a side note while looking at Akira.

"You should go for it, Griffin." Akira egged him on. Griffin shrugged and looked hesitant.

"Ehh, I don't think that's such a…"

"Hey, Thomas!!" Muffy yelled at the Mayor who turned in her direction, looking a bit perturbed. He hated when people called him by his first name, rather than 'mayor'.

"Can I do something for you, young lady?" He asked dryly.

"Griffin wants to enter the contest!" She grabbed Griffin's arm once again and lifted it into the air. Griffin immediately wrenched it away from her.

"Hey, I don't want to enter! Hey, wait-" Thomas pushed him in front to one of the cooking stations and began wishing him luck. Griffin scowled a bit and felt everyone's eyes upon him. He glared over at Muffy, who waved and wished him luck loudly over the low roar of the crowd. He saw Haru watching him intently and immediately turned away.

In front of him were a myriad of ingredients for making all types of beverages. Beside him Ruby was working up a storm. Mixers and blenders were whizzing away all around the cooking area. He soon set to work, pulling up things from the huge pile of ingredients to make his signature "Springtime" beverage. His bartender's hands did all the work and he was done before he even knew it.

At the table up front Flora was standing next to a jar of dark colored liquid that was steaming slightly. It was thick and viscous and looked to have bits of vegetables floating in it.

She smiled dazedly at Griffin and blinked in the light. Beside her Ann was proudly showing her jar of bright colored Pineapple juice. As Griffin placed his entry on the last entry marker, a farm girl called Celia came trotting up with a fine looking Vegetable latte. She was slightly out of breath and wiped her brow, looking satisfied. She had long, sleek dark hair and a modest green dress. Ruby was showing the mayor her fruit juice mixture.

One by one the Gourmet sipped samples of everyone's concoctions. Griffin could hear people calling out various names behind. He was surprised and a little embarrassed to hear his own every now and then. When the Gourmet stepped in front of Griffin the sunlight seemed to lose a little of its strength. He dipped a silver spoon beneath the surface of Griffin's drink and brought it back up to his lips.

He looked very pleased.

"Mmmmmmmm." He rumbled, his great tongue slipping out of his mouth and licking his lips again. He smacked several times and beamed. "Very nice, Mr. Griffin. Very good blend of flavors…" Griffin smiled in spite of himself.

"Thanks." He replied shortly. He watched as the Gourmet went down the line tasting Ruby's and Ann's. When he got to Flora's he stopped short.

"What… IS this…?" His jaw hung open a little. Flora looked dreamily up at him.

"Well… Celia was making somehing called 'vegetable latte' because her specialty is vegetables. So I thought, if my specialty is curry, I should make a 'curry latte', then…" She smiled a bit, encouraging the Gourmet with her look. The Gourmet grudgingly took a sample of the acrid looking mixture. He smiled painfully and nodded slightly, his face turning puce. He stepped away quickly and coughed with his back to the spectators.

"I've made my decision…" He announced, still facing away. He turned slowly, still looking a bit put off. "It was a tough choice between Ruby's fruit blend and Griffin's 'Springtime'…. But I'll have to say the winner is…" He surveyed the contestants once more.  
"Griffin!" The Gourmet shouted across the crowd. They all cheered for him. Griffin stroked his mustache and looked at the ground. He felt his face get a little hot and he stepped back into the crowd towards Muffy.

"See, I knew you would win!" She congratulated him. Griffin rumpled her hair a little and she looked annoyed. "Heyy! I spent a long time fixing my hair!" Akira and Haru looked impressed.

"That's pretty cool, Griffin!" Akira patted him on the arm. "I really want to come and have a drink at your bar now." Everyone around the beach area had begun to migrate back towards their homes in the valley.

"Can we walk you back up?" Muffy offered to Akira. He agreed and the four of them started to make their way up the slope. The temperature was dropping as midday was giving way to evening. The sky took on a delicate orange tinge above the horizon.

"Hey, Haru, you've gotta try a drink at Griffin's place and tell me how it is, okay?" Akira spoke to his sister.

"You don't have to ask me twice!" She nodded. Muffy looked over to Akira with a bit of concern.

"Why won't you come in together, Akira?" She seemed a bit upset.

"Oh, it's not that I wouldn't love to. It's just Mineral town is far away and I've got the ranch to attend all by myself now that Haru is leaving. She's moving to the ranch here in the Valley next week, so she'll be really nearby." He pointed off into the distance in the direction of the ranch where an old man called Takakura lived and worked that was a little ways off from the Blue Bar. The ranch's liveliness had been dwindling with every year Takakura aged. Haru nodded again, confirming what Akira had said.

"That Takakura was a friend of our father's. It was always their dream to work that farm together, but dad never got the chance. So I decided I'd do it for him." She sounded confident. Muffy looked quite inspired.

"That's great of you, Haru! We can be friends! Please come drop in the bar after work. If you can get Griffin to like you, he might even give you free drinks!" She joked. Griffin sighed and bit sheepishly.

After a bit more friendly chatting the four of them parted ways. Muffy was still talking in a bubbly tone as they stepped up to the Blue Bar's door.

"Isn't that Akira a cutie!?" She trotted up to the door. "I want to go down to Mineral town this Wednesday and-" She suddenly stopped as if something had just got caught in her throat. It got Griffin's attention. Upon seeing her face he noted that she looked quite alarmed.  
She was looking fixedly at the ground with an expression of sickened anxiety. At her feet, laid on the doorstep of the Blue Bar was a letter with her name written delicately in cursive on the front. She then snapped out of her stupor and seized it from its position and proceeded to shred it up as furiously as she could. She looked teary and red faced after it had been thoroughly torn to bits. Griffin just stared at her.

"Do you… want to explain…?"

"NO!" She snapped and turned away from him, breathing deeply. Griffin shrugged, a bit stunned, and unlocked the door. Muffy blustered in and retreated to the back room. Griffin sighed. It was gonna be another long night.


	2. Burnt Out Ends

Chapter 2

**Burnt Out Ends**

The door swung open and a flurry of vibrant red hair bustled in from the night.

"Nami. Come on in." Griffin greeted his customer. Nami pushed her flaming hair from her ice blue eyes and looked back at him, unsmiling.

"I'll take one of those things you made at that festival thing the other day." She mumbled. She stared back at him for a moment and then swooped into a seat at the bar. She had carefully chosen a seat that gave her good distance from the two lecherous twins that lived in the valley. Kassey and Patrick, the old twins, waved simultaneously at Nami with suggestive grins under their gray mustaches. Nami twitched her mouth in a half smile back at them, then looked back over at Griffin who was busy mixing her drink.

"Here ya are, kid." He slid her drink across the bar. She caught it and gave him a quick thumbs up, then began to sip her beverage. Griffin turned back to his three customers and leaned against the cabinet. It was another slow night.  
_What could Muffy be doing for so long back there….?_ Griffin thought lazily as he watched the two brothers guzzle their shots. Muffy had scurried out of the front room over three minutes ago.  
Then, as if he had summoned her with his mind, Muffy entered through the back room with the decrepit radio in hand.

"Got it!" She sounded refreshed. "This should liven things up a bit!" She marched past Griffin and planted the radio on top of one of the low standing cabinets. Griffin furrowed his brow.  
"Muffy, what are you doing?" He stood beside her, his arms crossed. "You're going to bother the customers."  
Muffy spun on heel and faced the three customers.  
"Will the music bother anyone?" She had a very cute smile on her face and tilted her head. Both of the brothers stood of taller in their seats and fixed their eyes on Muffy's alluring pose.

"Not at all, missy!"  
"You go right ahead, little lady!"

Muffy giggled and snapped the radio on. Nami looked as if she were not paying any attention at all. An old rock n' roll tune whined out of the radio. Griffin had to admit to himself it did liven the mood in the sleepy bar this evening, but he couldn't help feeling on edge. Kassey then ordered another round of shots and his brother began to chat up Muffy, who politely listened.

The door swung open again and the cool night breeze crept in. A man with an enormous green hat and beetle-black sunglasses followed the chilly spring breeze into the bar and shut the door with a click behind him.  
"Hey, Gustafa!" Kassey shouted. "Come on in, take a seat!" He patted the stool between him and Nami. Nami vaguely looked up from her drink.  
"Hey there everyone." His voice was calm and melodious. He had a scruffy beard and wore very an unusual striped shirt with a buckskin vest. He took his seat and removed his unusually shaped guitar from his back then rested it against the bar. Griffin could see some anticipation in his face for a moment. Then Gustafa turned to Nami and flashed a smile. "How's it going, Nami?"  
She looked up into his face and shrugged.

"Nothing exciting happened today, Mr. Hippie." She mumbled, ringing the top of her glass with one long slender finger.  
Muffy was rocking back and forth as Griffin mixed Gustafa's drink. Gustafa was a regular and he always ordered the same drink, so Griffin felt he didn't need to ask.

"Hey, Gustafa." Griffin said with his back facing the bar. "Why don't you play us a song tonight to liven up the mood."  
Gustafa beamed. "Well, I'd be honored. Would you all like to hear?" He waited for a response. Muffy clapped her hands and the twins cheered. Nami came out of her slouch and turned a bit towards Gustafa. Griffin then took the opportunity to grab the radio and switch it off. He waited until Muffy was watching Gustafa tune his guitar to stow it safely under the bar where he hoped she wouldn't find it later.

Gustafa began to pluck a lovely melody. His fingers moved deftly across the steel strings until a harmonious melody filled up the bar. It almost seemed brighter.

Griffin leaned back and listened to the music._ I'd almost forgotten why I love this place so much._ He thought serenely.  
When Gustafa had finished, everyone, including Nami, gave him a robust round of applause.

"Thank you!" He looked delighted. "I call that song 'Lone Traveler'." He told the people around him. Griffin noticed Nami's grin flutter away and her face became stony and contemplative. She slid down from her stool soon after.

"See you guys." There was a hurried tone in her voice. She stepped out of the bar and into the night.

"Oh hey!!" Muffy squeaked. "She forgot to pay!" Griffin scratched his wild dark hair and shrugged.

"It happens…" He shook his head. Upon hearing this, Gustafa reached into his pocket and pulled out several golden coins.

"Don't worry about it Griffin, I'll pick up her bill. Will that cover it?" He had a kind look on his face.

"Well thanks, Gustafa. You're a good guy. Nami's lucky to have a friend like you." Griffin slid the money off the bar top and into his own pocket. He noticed a pink tinge on the hippie's cheeks.

"You think so?" He said almost rhetorically. There were a few more moments of buzzing silence before he spoke again. "Well, I played my guitar tonight. How 'bout _you_ give us a little music now, Griffin?"  
Griffin sighed, but kept his grin. He knew this might happen if he suggested some sort of musical performance, but how else could he have gotten rid of the lousy radio?

"Not tonight." He tried to make it sound casual.  
"Oh, come on! You could outplay me any day! I really want to hear." Gustafa said with affirm. Griffin tried not to feel Muffy's hopeful eyes on him.  
"No, no… I'm just not…."  
"You used to play with the pros, didn't you?" Old Kassey piped up. His words were slurred with intoxication. "He was a real rock star!" He growled. Griffin laughed out loud, but felt hot and uncomfortable again.  
"That's not true." He tried to say over the roar of requests. He looked at his watch. "Hey guys, closing time. See you all tomorrow, okay?"

Everyone moaned with disappointment but Griffin moved with resolve towards the door. He said goodnight to everyone as they walked out and paid for their drinks. It was a relief locking up for the night but when he turned and saw Muffy looking at him with a peculiar gaze, he felt the weight of the situation roll back on. Deciding he'd just ignore it, he shut off the lights and went into the room without her. Perhaps it would diffuse any and all conflicts.

For a few moments there was quiet and he was able to rest on his bed without any sounds from Muffy. And then the quiet was broken by the crackle of static from the old radio.

Muffy bustled in with it in her hands. Griffin detected a bit of smugness in her expression. He sighed again and turned away.  
"Will you turn that thing off please, Muffy?" He tried to ask nicely without sounding forceful or panicked.

"Why?" Her voice was high and playful. Griffin rubbed his temple.  
"Because I'm tired, it's been a long night." He protested. She wasn't buying it.  
She sat at the table in the center of the room with her legs crossed.  
"Why do you hate the radio?"  
"I don't hate it, I'm just tired, that's all."  
"Then why do you always want me to turn it off as soon as I start it up?" She continued with her argument, looking irritatingly chipper for such a late hour.

"Look, I don't want to get into it, okay? Can you just-"  
"Oh, was it a present from your dead grandpa?" She guessed with mirth. "Or from your long lost cousin?" She would get no response from him. He lay back and decided to let her get bored with her game. "It a relic from your rock star days?"

Griffin couldn't stop himself from laughing. "I was never a rock star, silly." Muffy wouldn't give up that easily.  
"Are you afraid of that song you hate, then…? What's it called… 'Drown me in Amber?'" Griffin flinched before he could control himself. Muffy seized her opportunity.

"Oh, did I hit a nerve!?" She stood up, giddy.

"Go to bed now, Muffy." His voice was emotionless. He turned towards the wall. She stood in silence for a moment, then quietly went and clicked the radio off. A moment later the lights went out and he could hear her climbing the ladder and retreating into her loft.

Griffin didn't sleep well that night.


	3. Unexpected Visitors

Chapter 3

**Unexpected Visitors**

_Knock…knock knock…_

Griffin woke with a startle. It was early morning. He blinked through tired eyes. Someone was banging on the front door. He got up sleepily from his bed and wandered through the closed up bar to the front door.

"I'm comin'!" He yelled through the door to whoever was knocking. Griffin grabbed the doorknob and undid the latch. When the door swung open, he jumped ever so slightly. "Haru. What's up? The bar isn't open yet."

Haru had moved in about two weeks ago and had been coming to chat and play with Muffy in her time off. Griffin had seen her darting around the valley picking up flowers and other items to ship. The sleepy farm had gone from benign to the subject of everyone's gossip. Haru seemed to have brought a little more life to the valley and everyone was interested in their busy new village member.

"Hey, Griffin." She had a pleasant smile on her face. She had taken to pulling her chestnut hair up into two ponytails. "It's Wednesday, right?" She leaned to the side and looked back into the bar. Griffin remembered with a start.

"Oh, that's right!" The bar wasn't open at all today… he must've still been sleepy.

"Well, Muffy said she wanted to go to Mineral Town with me today, so came here to meet her." Haru explained. Griffin nodded.

"Lemme go see if she's awake. Would you like to come in? She can take an awful long whilegettin' ready…" He opened the door wider for her. She thanked him and stepped into the empty bar. Dust, illuminated by the slices of light pouring in from the window, was floating in curls all around. Haru took a seat at the bar as Griffin moved towards the backroom.

"I'll go get her." He told Haru as he went into his room and climbed the ladder up to Muffy's. He rapped on the trapdoor that led to her room with his knuckles. "Hey, Muffy. You awake?" He called up to her.  
"Yes! Is Haru here already?" Her muffled voice called back, a little panicked.

"Yeah, she's waiting for you down in the bar. You'd better hurry up."

"I'm coming, tell her I'll be right there!" There was a loud noise of something crashing to the floor and Muffy scurrying about above him. Griffin went back down the ladder only to see Haru standing in the room near the table.

"So, this is Griffin's room." She said looking around the spartan space. Griffin watched her. For some odd reason, he couldn't find anything to say.

Haru stepped lightly around the room, inspecting his things. The old radio stood stashed under Griffin's bed. It had been some time since Griffin and Muffy's argument about it, but he decided it was better to store it away where no one could turn it on.

Haru laid eyes on the old guitar that was resting in the corner.

"Is that yours?" She pointed at the tired instrument and looked at him with an excited stare. Griffin laughed softly.

"Yeah, it's mine." He scratched his scruffy head.

"That's really cool, I'd like to hear you play sometime." She looked back at the guitar with a somewhat inspired look. There was a moment of silence between them.

"Hey, how 'bout I make you a drink while you wait, Haru? I don't think you've had a chance to try one yet, right?" He offered. He felt a surge of quiet annoyance to hear that his voice sounded somewhat tremulous.

"Oh, a drink?" Haru considered it. "But isn't the bar closed today?"

Griffin shrugged feeling slightly stupid.

"I'll make an exception since Muffy is taking forever." He smiled genuinely back at her. Haru returned his smile.

"Well, sure then." She agreed, but as soon as they began to move back towards the bar, Muffy came barreling down the ladder.

"I'm so sorry to make you wait, Haru!" She had put on some nice make up and looked fresh and radiant. A floral scent floated behind her. She rushed over gleefully and gave Haru and friendly hug. Haru giggled and hugged her back. Griffin guessed that they were going to see Akira today.

"You girls gonna go shopping?" He asked genially. They nodded excitedly and Muffy went off about all the things she expected to buy and how wonderful they were.

"Well, go on then. He ushered them towards the door and out into the early summer sunshine. It was slowly getting hotter day by day. The valley seemed to gleam in the bright light.

"Bye, Griffin!" Haru waved at him.

"I'll make you a drink some other time." He waved back. Muffy offered a cheerful wave at him as well and the two girls set off towards Mineral Town practically skipping.

_It's good to see they've made such good friends._ Griffin thought as he watched them go. Haru seemed to be fitting in well with the other townspeople in the valley.

Griffin stood outside the bar for a long while watching the town athlete Wally jog with his son Hugh.

_What is there to do on a day off….? _Griffin pondered serenely, looking out at the foresty greens of the valley below. The ocean was shining and sparkling in the distance. Gustafa's colorful yurt could also be seen between the trees a ways off from the bar.  
_I'll just take a short walk…_ Griffin decided. He locked the door behind him and set off into the gleaming valley. It was very warm and there was a sort of buzz in the town today. As Griffin passed the Inner Inn, he saw Rock and Lumina. Rock, Ruby's son, was tan and blonde and had a very handsome face. He was also the cockiest person in the entire valley.

He had his arm up against the side of the wall and appeared to be chatting up Lumina, who was the girl who lived in the mansion on the hill above Griffin's bar. **She **was a talented pianist and was very courteous. Rock had been after her affections for some time, but she seemed to be affronted by his desires. Griffin caught a bit of what they were saying as he passed.

"…and then, just because I'm so cool and popular, I let that poor girl go on a date with me! Aren't I nice?" He flitted his pale hair from his eyes. Lumina looked peeved.

"Don't you have better things to do than tell me irrelevant stories like this?" Lumina asked him, her expression stern. Rock looked confused.

"Hey…. What's 'irrelevant' mean…?" He asked her. Griffin laughed a bit and walked past the bickering pair. Beyond the Inner Inn, Griffin caught sight of Haru's farm. He could see a few chickens out in the pasture as well as a healthy looking cow. The atmosphere from the farm was vibrant. Griffin stood looking at it momentarily, fighting the urge to go and look around. It seemed too… creepy to go and poke around Haru's farm while she was away.

He continued on past the bridge under which the clear river sang and fluttered. A cool mist rose around its edges and sprayed into the balmy day. Beyond the rushing river was Vesta's farmland. Celia and Marlin, Vesta's younger brother, lived and worked in this vegetable farm. Griffin looked out across the fields where an abundance of vegetables were growing. The smell of fresh produce and earth floated in the air around the farm. He could see Vesta's tall form working busily in between the magnificent rows of corn, tomatoes and onions. Flashes of red and gold hung heavily on the green stalks that filled the wide farmland. Dark haired, fair Celia watered the plants tirelessly while Marlin, looking surly as usual, stood a ways off from her. Every so often he'd glance in her direction with a slightly hungry look. She was completely oblivious. As Griffin walked between their fields and their small shop he called out to Vesta and waved. She stood up and waved cheerfully back.

Griffin was glad he lived in such a friendly place. He exited the farm and walked amongst the tall white windmills that rose up like ivory trees on the rolling meadows beyond the farmlands. Gustafa and Professor Carter, both regulars at the Blue Bar, were resting between the windmills.

"Hey you two." Griffin said as he walked up and sat beside them on the sunny hillock. "What are you doing out here?"

"It has become intolerably hot down in the dig today, so I came up for a little fresh air." Carter explained robustly. "Nothing like a little sunlight to refresh oneself!" Gustafa laughed. He was lazily plucking his guitar strings.

"Mind if I sit with you for a while?" Griffin asked cordially**. **They both agreed in unison, welcoming him. The three friends chatted for a while about the weather and their jobs and such. It was a very sleepy and relaxed sort of day.

"So, have you guys gotten to know Haru yet?" Gustafa suddenly changed the subject. Griffin suddenly felt his mouth go dry. Carter laughed loudly again.

"She is wonderful, is she not?" Carter commented. "She comes in and helps with the dig quite often and she has quite a knack for it. I'd ask her to be my assistant if she were not so busy with that ranch of hers."

"Yeah, she's a sweet girl. She'll come and sit with me sometimes in the evening and listen to my guitar. She's got great taste in music."

_I can play guitar better than that guy._ Griffin thought bitterly all of a sudden. He was then taken aback by his own thought. He cleared his throat softly.

"Yes, I believe she makes a wonderful addition to our little family here in the valley." Carter agreed. "Does she drink at the bar often, Griffin?" Griffin looked up dazedly.

"Oh… uh... Not really." He shrugged. "She comes in to see Muffy a lot, though." Gustafa then changed the subject again, but Griffin wasn't really listening. He couldn't understand why, but all at once he'd began to feel very dejected. He cleared his throat again. The valley seemed duller than before. He dismissed himself politely from the group and began plodding home. As he walked through the bright light and rustling trees, he took care to avoid looking at Haru's ranch as he passed it on his way home.

As he approached his bar, out of the brightness came someone he'd never expected to see again in his entire life.

From the path leading to the seashore a tall slender woman was walking around as if she was searching for something... or someone. Her silky black hair was much longer than it had been when he had known her so many years ago and she looked tired and defeated. But there was no mistaking it was her. Griffin panicked.

He unlocked the door with violently shaking hands and rushed inside, slamming it safely shut behind him. He stood gasping for breath, his back to the door.

_Why is she here….?_

What is going on…?

He chanced a look out of the window. She was coming straight towards the bar from a distance away, that familiar cold look on her face. Griffin slumped down beside the door. He was a wreck, biting at his fingernails fiercely.

_Maybe she'll go away…_

She probably didn't see me…

He breathed roughly for a few more minutes.

_Go away… Go away… _

He sat with his back to the door for a very long time. He watched the white sheaf of light travel slowly across the wooden floor of the musty bar until it disappeared into shadow. All the while he sat he was willing himself not the think about the woman who could still be out there…waiting…

_All these years… I've forced myself to forget… and now you show up… Why did you have to come back, Valentine?_

And then the door behind his back shook as someone began to knock.


	4. Sparkles and Moonlight

Chapter 4

**Sparkles and Moonlight**

"Who is it!?" Griffin yelled, sounding thoroughly paranoid.

"It's me, Griffin." The voice shouted back. Was it her? He couldn't tell. He shut his eyes and answered back.

"The bar's closed, go away!" He was humiliated at how pathetic he sounded. There were a few more moments of quiet.

"Are you okay, Griffin?" The voice shouted back. He suddenly recognized the tone. It was Muffy.

He choked a bit and stood up, his knees shaking a bit. He unlocked the door and opened it for Muffy, who had a look of genuine concern on her face.

"What's the matter? What happened to you?" She asked, pushing her way inside and looking around for a threat of some sort. Griffin looked outdoors at the shady valley. She was nowhere in sight. Nonetheless he locked the door and turn to face Muffy.

"Nothing's wrong." He took a deep breath and tried to appear calm. Muffy looked very confused.

"You're acting very strange. I've never seen you like this before… Something has got to be up." Griffin shook his head.

"Nope, everything is fine. Nothing's wrong at all. Nothing." He muttered. He knew he sounded ridiculous. He just simply couldn't calm his pounding heart. Sympathy entered Muffy's eyes. She stepped up to him cautiously and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Let's go sit down." Her voice was kind. He was in a haze as she pulled him to the table in his room and they sat down. Griffin clutched his chest. Why did Valentine have to come and upset everything like this? It was just like her. Griffin bit his tongue hard. He had forced himself never to think about his past and now her presence had ruined all his hard work.

_I guess I'll never truly forget…_ He thought sadly. He noticed Muffy was looking across the table at him intently. He coughed and looked away.

"Sorry, Muffy. I'm okay." He mumbled. He found he couldn't bring himself to look at her.

"Griffin, if something's wrong… you can tell me." She spoke very softly. "You don't always have to hide everything from me. I'm… I'm your friend." She sounded a little hurt. Griffin looked back up, disconcerted.

"Muffy…" His throat was tight. He thought about what he would say. "Look, it's not that I'm trying to hide anything from you… I swear." He swallowed, feeling terrible. "Nothing bad just happened, I promise you. I just saw something that reminded me… of…" He was unable to speak about it. She squinted her eyes and bit and chewed her lip slightly.

"Of what?" She whispered. Griffin felt a great surge of pain well up inside his chest.

"Of…" He tried to speak, but words just didn't come. "It was just something very… something that happened a long time ago…that I'm just not ready… to talk about…" It was exhausting speaking of it. Flashes of memory appeared to him and he blocked them away. Muffy coughed, dragging her fingers in circles on the table and sighed deeply.

"As long as you're okay." She was obviously disappointed. Griffin looked at her earnestly.

"Am I allowed to change the subject?" He asked her delicately, his heart still beating very fast. She gave a small giggle and nodded. Griffin was relieved.

"How was Mineral Town?" He questioned her, hoping to get the entire thing behind them. Muffy smiled a little bit.

"It was really fun. Haru's a good friend." Her face looked as if she were recalling fond memories. "We went shopping and Haru bought lots of seeds. Then we ate at the Inn and we chatted with Ann and Karen. Haru even paid for me!"

"How was Doug?" Griffin asked, referring to the owner of the inn, who was his long time friend.

"He's doing fine. He says you should come visit him and Duke again soon…" Muffy left off, still looking a bit down. Griffin gave her a weak smile.

"Did you see your boyfriend?" He asked a bit slyly. Muffy giggled joyfully at this and gave him a soft, playful slap on the hand.

"Are you talking about Akira?" She asked, giddy. "He's not my boyfriend! But… we did go and visit him and it was very nice. He's got this great big farm that's twice the size of Haru's. His house is very cozy and clean too… and he even gave me some flowers to take home to liven up the bar." Her cheeks were rosy and she sounded delighted. Griffin noticed for the first time there was a bunch of pink bell-shaped flowers in Muffy's lap.

"Sounds like you had fun." He said to her, then hesitated for a moment. "How was Haru, did she have fun too? You didn't trouble her too much did you?" He was starting to get his composure back.

"She was great, we talked a lot. She told me about her ranch life and everything."

He knew he shouldn't have asked, but the question escaped before he could stop it.  
"Isn't she dating Gustafa or something?"

Muffy shook her head vigorously.  
"Oh no! I thought you knew Gustafa has a thing for Nami." She told him with relish. She was in gossip mode; there was no stopping her now. "You know that the song he played in the bar a couple weeks back… I heard he wrote it for her!" She was getting overly excited. "I've been watching the two very closely… I think they are destined to end up together."

"Well, what about Carter then?" Griffin asked.

"What about Carter?" Muffy asked, nonplussed.

"Is he Haru's boyfriend?" Griffin felt embarrassed again.

"Eeyuch! No!" Muffy looked violated. "Carter's like 45! I don't think Haru wants an ancient man like that."

"Oh." Griffin felt dejected again. She looked at him with squinted eyes.

"Why are you so interested in who Haru's involved with, anyway?"

"Me? I'm not interested in Haru's private business. I'm just making conversation." Muffy wouldn't accept that, she keep looking across at Griffin. He sighed. "I just heard Carter and Gustafa talking about her today, that's all."

She shrugged.

"Whatever. I'm going to get changed. I'll talk to you later." She got up.

"Hey, Muffy." Griffin said without looking at her.

"What?"

"Thanks."

--

It was unnaturally cold when Griffin awoke. He sat up in bed and looked around. It was the dead of night and moonlight was softly beaming in the windows. When he looked and saw that his door and the front door were wide open and flapping in the breeze he jumped out of bed.

"What..?" He looked around madly for a reason that the doors would be open in the middle of night. Then he thought about Muffy.  
"Muffy!?" He shouted out in the cold dark night. "Muffy, are you okay up there!?"

There was silence for a few moments, then all of a sudden her heard Muffy shriek. He was up the ladder in a few moments and pushed his way violently through the trap door. Muffy was sitting in bed wearing her nightgown. She looked pale and scared and was hugging the comforter to her body.

"What's the matter?" Griffin asked, feeling adrenaline rush through his body. Muffy pointed with a shaking finger behind Griffin and he turned around in an instant. Standing in the corner of the room striking a magnificent pose was a very slender man.

He had luxurious silver hair that hung elegantly around his face and sea-green eyes. His pale skin was illuminated in the soft moonlight.

"Oops." He spoke playfully in his velvety voice. "I've been spotted."

"Who the hell are you!?" Griffin felt more confused than alarmed.

"Perhaps you've heard of the mysterious, notorious, and not to mention sexy … Phantom Skye!?" He struck another dramatic pose. Griffin just stared at him. Skye's flawless face looked a bit troubled.

"Well, you probably should be a little more scared. I came to issue a message to you, Mr. Bartender. It was supposed to be in the form of a note, but… alas, this all too lovely maiden awoke before I could get it written!" Muffy giggled a bit behind them both. At once he tossed up his slender wrist and little pieces of shredded paper fluttered down around him like confetti. Griffin's mouth hung open in utter confusion.

"Are you completely off your rocker?" He asked Phantom Skye. Skye looked angry again.

"Be quiet, you! I'm trying to deliver my message." Skye cleared his throat and composed himself again. "I, Phantom Skye, will return tomorrow night at an undisclosed hour and rob you blind! You have been warned…" He added ominously.

Then before anyone could say another thing, Skye backed towards the open window and flung himself out in a flurry of sparkles and moonlight. Griffin gasped and rushed to the windowsill. Below on the ground there was no sign of the flamboyant thief. It was dead still for a moment. Then Muffy spoke.

"He was really sexy…." She sounded dreamy. Griffin glared at her and then went downstairs to lock the door.


	5. A Rose Colored Feeling

Chapter 5

**A Rose-Colored Feeling**

"Yes… Come as soon as possible… It's very important… Oh, is Lumina there with you too? Tell her to come along, as well… Ok, I'll see you soon!" Muffy put down the phone with a huge, smile on her face.

Griffin watched her amusedly as she tidied up a bit. She had been asking him all morning if she could have her friends over in the bar for an emergency get together. She had been so excited over last night's happenings she couldn't contain herself and absolutely had to invite all the young women in the Valley over to gossip about it.

"Six in the morning is simply too early, Muffy." Griffin had said, groggy and displeased when she woke him up early to ask his permission.

Around ten he had loosened up and allowed Muffy to arrange for the girls to meet up and chat before the bar opened. Muffy was ecstatic.  
It wasn't even fifteen minutes later when a knock came at the door. Muffy hopped over with a happy squeal and let Nami and Lumina inside the bar.

"So, what's the big news?" Lumina asked Muffy, looking around for some sign of what could make Muffy so spurred. "Are you engaged to a handsome stranger?"

"No, but this _does_ involve a handsome stranger." Muffy's eyes were alight. Nami looked appropriately skeptical. Soon after the two girls had settled, Lumina next to Muffy, and Nami isolated at the end of the bar, Celia bustled in.

"I've brought some snacks!" She announced cheerfully, holding a basket teeming with fresh fruits and vegetables. Griffin listened from his room as the girl's giggles shimmered while they nibbled on their treats. Not long after, Griffin heard the door open and Flora's lazy voice greeted the gaggle of women.

"Hello, everyone. I heard there was a sort of meeting…? We've just come from the dig site together…Oh, hello Celia…"  
"Flora, come in! Oh yay! And Haru's arrived too!" Muffy voice chorused. "We can finally get down to business."

_Haru's here?_ Griffin thought quietly from his table. _Maybe I should go say hi…_ He stroked his mustache, playing with the thought.

"Ok, well… Hey, be quiet you two, don't you want to here what happened?" Muffy's voice called playfully from the room beyond. "All right… Shush, I said!" There was another short eruption of giggles. Muffy cleared her throat. "You will not believe what happened last night! I was sleeping peacefully, right? When all of a sudden, I hear this great big noise. So, obviously I woke up and looked around. It was pitch black of course, and deathly cold… then I looked up and standing in front of my bed was the handsomest man I think I've ever seen!" Muffy's audience was rapt. Griffin could imagine the look of cold disbelief on Nami's face.

"Did that really happen?" Celia whispered.

"Oh, it gets better!! So he steps up all suave and cool… beautiful sleek silver hair, eyes that shone like the sea…"

"Oh my goodness, was it Phantom Skye!?" Lumina shrieked. A voice Griffin recognized as Haru's began to speak very fast in collaboration with Lumina's.

"We've met him too!" Haru told Muffy at once. "He was at Lumina's mansion late one night!"

"Isn't he dreamy?" Muffy cooed. Lumina squealed in agreement.

"Oh, he is absolutely the most dashing man in existence…"

"I'm… not so sure about that…" Haru gave her opinion on the matter. "He seems like a playboy, that's for sure."

"He really seemed to like you, Haru…" Lumina said.

"Wooow…" Flora breathed.

"This is all very exciting!" Celia added in.

"So this creep just appears in your room and that's why we're all here?" Nami questioned. "Hey, is Griffin here? I want a drink."

Although Griffin heard his name he didn't move.

"I don't know if he wants to work before the bar's open…" Muffy said. "And.. There's more to the story than just that!"

"Well tell us what happened, already!" Lumina urged Muffy.

"Well, he appeared before my bed…and he said 'hello, you lovely maiden' and then suddenly Griffin came up to see what was going on. Then the Phantom announced that he would come back here tonight and steal all of our money! Finally… he told me, 'goodnight, you beautiful girl…' and he fluttered out the window and was gone!" Muffy finished her embellished story with gusto.

"He's coming back tonight?" Celia wondered aloud. "What are you going to do?"

"Wait up at all the entrances and you can beat the living daylights out of him when he arrives!" Flora suggested a little too cheerfully.

"He might steal more than your valuables, Muffy. He might even steal your heart away as well!" Lumina teased. Muffy tutted.

"Oh, no no… My heart is set on another, no lousy thief could divert my attentions from this boy…" Muffy had a skill of making everything sound utterly romantic.

"You've fallen in love with someone…?" Nami asked, her voice less coarse than usual.

"Well, I don't know if I'm in love…"

"I know who it is!" Haru sang playfully. Muffy laughed airily.

"Who is it?"

"Who?"

"Oh, go ahead and tell them, Haru." Muffy was pleased.

"It's my older brother, of all people." Haru said with a shade of disgust in her voice. This set off the girls again and everyone began chattering away.

"Oh, that's wonderful Muffy! Does he seem to like you…?" Lumina asked. "Oh… I wish I could find a nice boy…"

"But you have! I thought you and Rock were an item?" Flora said slowly.

"Oh, no!" Lumina rejected the thought. "Rock is terrible… He's arrogant and cocky…" She didn't sound like she meant was she was saying.

"But you two are together so much! I thought you were the best of friends…?" Muffy asked, positively glowing.

"Well… yes…I suppose we have grown rather close… but…"

"Lumina's in love with Rock, I knew it!"

"Nooo!" There were sounds of a playful scuffle and high-pitched giggles. Griffin was slightly put off by all this talk about affections. The subject never went over well with him. He couldn't seem to get up and shut the door, though. He just kept on listening to what the girls were saying.

"Well, I'm not the only one with a crush! What about you, Nami? Don't try and deny it!" Lumina finally continued the conversation.

"What are you talking about?" Nami was on her guard.

"We all know about it, we see you two." Muffy jokingly accused her. Nami scoffed and growled a bit.

"Are you talking about that clown Gustafa?" She seemed perturbed. "Ha ha, there is not a snowball's chance in hell that I-!"

"She doesn't even know how much he truly means to her!" Lumina shouted sappily.

"That's enough! We're just friends. No… not even friends… acquaintances at best…" Nami sighed audibly. "Now I really need a drink…Griffin! Are you back there?" She called out. Griffin knew there was no escaping it.

"Yeah, what do you need?" He shouted back.

"Can you come make me a drink, please?" Nami requested. Griffin got up and walked into the crowded bar area. He gave a soft smile to all the girls. They were all silly, but sweet nonetheless.

"All right, all right. But don't expect this kinda treatment all the time, Nami." He went over and mixed Nami's favorite drink and slid it over to her. She thanked him and tossed him a few gold pieces from her pocket.

"You know, you shouldn't be so hard on old Gustafa… He paid for your drink last time." Griffin told Nami in an almost fatherly sort of way. Nami's cheeks turned pinkish.

"Oooh, Griffin was eavesdropping!" Muffy shouted and Lumina and Celia giggled.

"Gustafa paid for me…?" Nami ignored the other two and took a quiet thoughtful sip. Lumina and Muffy nodded at each other understandingly. Nami finished her drink while the rest of the girl's continued to socialize and then quietly took her leave, seemingly lost in thought.

"Oh, it would be so nice to be in love…" Celia said wistfully. "I always wish a prince would come and whisk me away." All the girl's expressions went sappy. Griffin tried not to laugh.

"Hey, Haru… you've been here a while. Have you got your eye on anyone special, yet?" Muffy looked over at Haru as she asked her. Haru looked a little taken aback at suddenly being put on the spot.

"Hmmm…" She put a finger to her lips. She looked around at her girlfriends as she thought. Griffin wasn't sure if he imagined it, but he thought he saw her amethyst colored eyes flicker towards him for a spilt second and look away. His heart unexpectedly skipped a beat and he looked hurriedly down at his shoes.

"There's really no one." She shrugged. It was silent for several seconds after she spoke.

"No one but Phantom Skye!" Muffy reminded her jokingly. Griffin's lightly beating heart suddenly was filled with a low sort of anger.

"That flamboyant thief… I'm gonna get him tonight!" He said aloud. "He isn't gonna steal a single penny from my bar."

"Uh-oh, Griffin's mad!" Lumina pointed at him.

"Well, of course I am. I don't want guys like that roaming around my property in the dead of night… do you?"

"I'll bet Haru does." Flora said snidely. Haru looked disgruntled and pushed Flora lightly. After a few more minutes of chatting away pleasantly, Celia and Flora excused themselves.

"We've really got to get back to work. It's been wonderful talking with you!" Celia said politely, gathering up her near empty basket.

"Good luck with that Phantom guy…." Flora waved as she exited. As they opened the door to leave, Rock slid past them and into the bar.

"Hey, Lumina! I finally found you!" He rudely pushed past Celia and Flora, who shot him dirty looks as they went out. "I didn't know you drank!"

Lumina's airy disposition darkened a bit.

"I don't, I was just chatting with my friends here." She turned her nose up.

"Hey, let's go to the beach! It's nice and hot today! You can tell me how sexy I look in my swim trunks."

Muffy choked a bit behind her hand. Lumina's eyebrows furrowed in anger.

"Rock…" She shook her head exasperadtly.

"Come on, it'll be a blast! I thought you'd be happy that you get to go on a date with the guy you like…" He told her coyly. Now Griffin and Haru tried to choke back laughter. Lumina turned away from Rock, her cheeks glowing. Rock looked trodden on.

"Well, if that's the way you're gonna be… I'll just to go alone…" He sounded almost pathetic. The bell tingled as Rock exited the shop and all was still. Lumina looked anxious.

"Oh, for Heaven's sake!" She shouted unexpectedly and flew out of the door. "Rock, wait for me!" She could be heard calling as the door slammed shut behind her.

Muffy, Griffin and Haru all looked at each other and began to laugh.

"She's crazy for him…" Muffy spoke through her giggles. "Even though he's an idiot…"

"They are cute together…" Haru pondered.

"Hey, Haru… how 'bout that drink now?" Griffin offered again.

"Oh sure, that'd be nice!" She looked very happy. Her expression made Griffin smile. He grabbed a bottle and a cup.

"So, what are you going to do about your thief problem?" Haru looked at Griffin and Muffy "You're not just gonna let that two-bit robber steal from you, are you?"

"Nah, we've got a plan. Right, Muffy?" Griffin poured Haru's drink as he spoke.

"We do?" Muffy sounded clueless. "Oh yeah, we do! We're gonna wait up until he comes and chase him off! Right, Griffin?"

"Right…" He chuckled and slid Haru her drink. "Tell me what you think, Haru."

Suddenly her face went stony. "Oh no! I just remembered! I forgot to crate up all that corn! Thomas will be coming soon to pick it up, aggh!!" She looked horrified. "Oh no, oh no! I'm so sorry Griffin!" She stood up and reached into her rucksack and pulled out a coin purse hurried. She fished out some gold and pushed it into Griffin's hand. He shivered at the touch of her fingers. They were soft…

"Sorry guys, I'll be back later tonight!" She rushed over to the door.

"Huh? Why?" Muffy questioned.

"To help you get that thief, of course! He can't just expect to steal from my friends and think I won't be there to pound him!" She flashed them a quick thumbs up and barreled out the door towards her farm.

Griffin didn't know whether to feel happy or disappointed as he looked with tired eyes at Haru's untouched drink.


	6. Broken Bottles

**Chapter 6**

**Broken Bottles**

The night was balmy as Griffin saw Marlin, the twins, Carter and Daryl out.

"Thanks so much for coming, everyone. Catch you 'round."

"Thanks a lot, Griffin!" The twins shouted back at him. Griffin watched his customers walk happily to their homes. The night was velvety and a deep purple haze had set in over the valley. The stars twinkled back at the earth and the hum of insects filled the air. A delicate breeze played over the hills. Muffy could be heard clanking about behind the opened door. She was humming to herself as she washed the glasses.

_I wonder if Haru will remember…_ Griffin thought as he gazed out at the deep night. It was already near midnight, and she still hadn't shown up. He cursed himself for caring so much. _I'm really being silly… I shouldn't get so worked up…_

It was really a mystery to him why he wanted her there so much. Whenever a spare moment had rolled around this evening, he'd found himself wondering about Haru… What was Haru doing? Did Haru really care about helping them with Phantom Skye? Did Haru get her corn crated up in time?

He scratched his head in a dull sort of anxiety. It wasn't like him to be counting on people like that. In fact, it was perplexing. He leaned outside for a while longer and thought about why he cared at all.

"Waiting for Haru?" Muffy came out beside him, holding a dishrag. She looked out down the hill and to the sea. The moon's reflection was shards of swimming light on it's surface.

"No!" Griffin said a little to fast. _Why am I acting this way…? _He thought angrily. Muffy looked back up at him.

"Why so forceful?" She gave him a wry smile. He composed himself and met her gaze.

"Haru, probably isn't coming." He told her soberly. "She most likely forgot." Muffy shook her head, her flossy blonde hair picking up the moonlight.

"I know Haru's gonna come. I know she wouldn't just say something like that and not show."

"We'll see." Griffin's voice sounded more hopeful than he'd wanted it to be. Muffy looked over at him with an almost scrutinizing glance, then turned away with a soft smile. She thankfully didn't say anything else for a long time.

"Hey, that Skye really isn't gonna take our stuff, is he?" She asked softly. "Like… he wouldn't really hurt anyone, would he?"  
_So… Underneath the giddy feminine exterior is a little bit of worry after all…_ Griffin smiled underneath his mustache.

"I won't let him get ya." He told her reassuringly. _Or Haru… _He thought quietly to himself.

Her pinched face melted into a smile for a few moments, then changed once more to a look of surprise.

"Haru!" She shouted, waving excitedly. "We thought you'd forgotten!" Griffin turned to see Haru dashing over to them, a board grin on her face. Her cheeks had rosy tint from running in the night air.

"Of course not!" She panted, as she stopped short in front of them. "It just takes so long to get those stubborn cows in the barn!" She looked awake and ready.

"Well, let's get inside and think up a battle plan. He could be around any minute…" Griffin reminded them.

He took extra care to lock the door behind the girls as they stepped inside. Muffy and Haru sat on the barstools and Griffin took his position behind the bar. It felt natural to be there, with him being a bartender. Even when he was not working, behind the bar felt the safest and most sensible.

"Okay, so how are we gonna do this?" Muffy opened up the conversation. Griffin scratched his chin, thinking for a moment.

"Didn't you guys say you had a plan?" Haru's scolding remarke was surprisingly full of mirth.

Muffy shrugged and looked nonplussed. Griffin still thought silently. Haru laughed softly and shook her head.

"Well, for starters we could be stationed at all possible entrances and await his arrival." Haru thought aloud. Griffin shook his head.

"Supposing you meet him and push comes to shove, what would happen? I don't want anyone getting hurt. Meanin' no offense, of course, but I'm not gonna match either of you two up in a fight against a thief." Griffin told them They seemed to accept it with shrugs. "We oughta stay together. I figure we should gather everything important in a place and guard it all together in a place where there's no windows or doors and-"

"What is that delicious smell?" Muffy injected suddenly. They all sniffed. A delicate and tantalizing scent of curry had suddenly perfumed the air. Muffy breathed in the air deeply. Haru looked about for a source.

"Mmmm… It smells so good… I feel so hungry all of a sudden…" Muffy rubbed her stomach. She followed her nose over to the door. "I think it's coming from outside, somewhere…"

"Hey, don't run off!" Griffin warned as Muffy completely ignored him and wandered outside, sniffing the air.

"It's probably just Ruby making a late night snack…" Haru leaned over and watched Muffy walk toward the Inn. "She'll be back soon enough…" Griffin remained skeptical. After a minute or two the tempting aroma became twice as strong. Both Haru and Griffin displayed signs of hunger.

"What's taking her so long…" Haru moaned. "I wanna eat some too…"

"I'll go get her." Griffin told Haru with a bit of exasperation. It was just like Muffy to drift off at a time of importance. "Don't move, I'll be right back. If you see him, give a holler and I'll come running." Griffin went out the front door and into the night. A ways off Muffy was standing on tiptoes in the back area of the inn, looking in the kitchen window.

"Hey, Muffy! What're you doing…?" Griffin asked, jogging over to her.

"I don't think Ruby's even awake… I wonder where it could be coming from…" She wondered, seemingly not bothered by the fact that a thief might be pillaging their home as the spoke. Griffin gently grabbed her arm.

"Come on, you need to have your love of mysterious yet strangely effeminate men conquer your love of food for the moment." He gave her a soft tug. She peered up into his face. She looked as if she was coming out of a dreamlike state.

"Oh, sorry…" She spoke slowly. "I… don't know what came over me…" She rubbed her temple and looked a bit ruffled. Somewhere behind them both there was loud sound of breaking glass. Muffy and Griffin looked at one another.

"Haru!" They shouted in unison, and took off towards the bar. Griffin cursed as they ran towards the bar's door. _Why did I ever leave her alone…!?_

When they finally reached the door, slightly out of breathed, Griffin grabbed the handle and tugged. It was locked.

"Dammit!" He kicked the door. "Muffy, go look in the window. See what's happening." He commanded, fumbling with his key ring. Muffy scurried over to the window, when the flickering light shining from the window touched her face, she gasped.

"Oh no!" She yelped. "He's in there with her! He's… he's talking about something… It looks like there's something wrong with Haru…" Muffy sounded sick. A sort of panic overtook Griffin as he heard her speak. He shoved the key in the keyhole and wrenched the door open.

"Stay out there, Muffy!" He shouted at her as he went in. As soon as he stepped into the bar, he knew where the sounds of breaking glass had come from. All over the floor were glowing fragments of broken bottles gleaming in the dull lamplight. Amber liquid was covering the floor, resonating with a dull sheen.

Towards the bar stood Haru. Her entire body was rigid and she had a pained expression on her face as she watched Skye elegantly poke through the cupboards behind the bar, his back to the door.

"Griffin…" Haru whined. As Haru spoke, the thief looked up.

"Oopsie." He murmured, putting a white finger to his lips.

"Hey!" Griffin clenched his fists. It would be foolish to charge. He'd inevitably slip and fall onto thousands of shards of broken glass and stinging alcohol.

"What did you do to her?" He demanded, bristling. Skye gave simpering laugh and stepped over to where Haru stood frozen. He put his supple hands on Haru's chin affectionately.

"Don't you worry… I could never harm my lovely little Haru…" His voice was silky as he moved seductivly around Haru's frozen form. "She'll be back to normal soon…" Griffin shook with anger as he tried to tiptoe his way through the broken glass to where Skye stood. The thief stepped lightly over behind to bar and fished something out of the storage area. Griffin's heart nearly stopped. It was a gray, metal box which held his entire savings. Every penny he owned.  
Skye shook it and shivered with visible pleasure as he heard the coins jangle inside.

"All mine!" He exclaimed. "Good doing, business with you, Mr. Bartender! Toodle-loo!" Skye pranced deftly between the shards on the floor, towards the back room.

"NO!" Griffin howled at Skye, unable to get to him in time. Haru looked absolutely tear stricken as Skye passed by her, silver hair drifting behind him.

"Skye… Please don't…" She begged him, her eyes welling up. He stopped to give her a sympathetic look.

"Don't be sad Haru… This is just my way…" He put two fingers to his pale lips and blew a kiss to Haru. A tear rolled down her cheek. Griffin was getting closer. His heart pumped fiercely. He could catch Skye, he could get his money back!

Skye seemed to noticed this as well and he pushed off from where he stood so close to Haru. His sudden movement rocked Haru where she stood immobilized. Griffin passed Haru and was inches away from Skye. His radiant, sea-green eyes were filled with worry. Griffin rushed him and the theif was sudden;y within arm's length. Skye tiptoed back, weaving through shards. As Griffin groped for him, Skye's face was suddenly stained with genuine terror. He gupled for air and pointed behind Griffin.

Griffin could not help but look back. Haru was teetering dangerously back and forth, looking white as a sheet. She tried to propel her stiff arms to catch her balance, but she was too far back. She gave a frightened yelp of helpless fear as her foot slipped on the spilled alcohol at her feet. Below her was thousands of razor sharp blades of broken glass.

In that split second grotesque visions flashed in Griffin's mind's eye. The fall. Crimson rivers flowing from her pale face. Glass buried deep into flesh.

Griffin didn't even think. He shot from where he was and reached out his arms out to her and felt his feet slide on the floor.

Haru's stiff body flew straight into Griffin's arms and landed there. He held onto her tight, but he stumbled into a glittering pile of glass. White hot icicles drove deep into Griffin's foot and he cried out in agony as Haru tried to squirm to life in his arms.

"Oh Goddess…!" She gasped for breath. She was shaking violently. Skye looked thoroughly rattled, but managed to compose himself enough to make his escape. He hopped deftly from the scene and scurried out of the room. Moments later that was the sounding of Griffin's window being smashed and Skye made his careful escape.

"HARU! GRIFFIN!" Muffy bawled from outside.

"Go get Hardy, now!" Haru told her with an authoritative command. Muffy shot off without a moment's hesitation.

"Haru, are you okay…?" Griffin's voice was weak. Haru seemed to be gaining some control of herself. She looked up at him, tears flowing down her face.

"I-" She choked. "I'm f-fine…" Her hands were shaking. Griffin could feel the tall needles of glass inside his foot. He winced in anguish. Haru tried to catch her balance again, but could only manage to lean against Griffin's chest for support.

Griffin tried to focus. He breathed heavily as he processed the situation. He needed to get her out.

"Okay, hold on Haru." His voice was gruff.

"What are you thinking of do-" She let out a little yelp as Griffin scooped her up from where she stood. He put some weight on his injured foot and felt shots of pain overtake his leg. The glass had pierced his foot deeply.

_I can take it._ He thought with utter determination. With his good foot, he slid all the shards in his path out of the way. Tiny curls of his own blood was mixing with the amber liquid which was slowly soaking into the floorboards.

Drown me in Amber… Griffin thought with masochistic humor. He stepped methodically towards the door, keeping Haru safe above the glass. She was protesting madly, but he wasn't listening. A few more steps. He time he put weight on his injured foot, and a fierce stinging bit into him, driving the glass shards in deeper and deeper. And then at last he made it to the door.

Griffin set Haru down in the grass outside and she seemed able to stand. She seemed speechless as she watched him meander over to the side of the bar and slide down against the side of it.

"You… didn't have to do that…" Her lips were trembling. Griffin shrugged.

"Neither Hardy nor Muffy could've done it. We'd had to have woken up someone to come get you. Seemed sensible enough to me." He gave her a weak smile. His unspeakable loss flashed in his mind. All the money he had was gone…. Most of his bottles were smashed…and his window was broken. And how was he going to pay Hardy for fixing his foot…? It was utmost despair. Haru crept over to him, silent tears still overcoming her. The world was starting to get hazy. Sounds seemed very distant. Had he lost that much blood already? Haru didn't seem to notice how badly he was hurt, and he was glad of it.

"Griffin… your money… you had him…" Haru covered her mouth and looked absolutely nauseated. "You didn't have to come back for me."  
He leaned his head against the cold stone wall. Perhaps it was his light-headedness that had made his sense leave him, or perhaps it was the fact he was delirious with pain. He spoke to Haru huskily.

"I'd give up any sum of money... rather than see you hurt, Haru..."


	7. Heat and Haze

Chapter 7

**Heat and Haze**

Delicate linen curtains fluttered in the early afternoon's lazy breeze. Potted plants shuddered in the warm radiance they were bathed in. Bright light shone in the glass which refracted the intense light, washing the colors of the room out. A light film of humidity hung in the air as Griffin opened his eyes. He felt at ease and carefree as he slowly awoke, but knew there was something he'd forgotten. On the corner of his mind was something important…

Everything around him was blanched and gleaming. A heavy, slightly see through material bordered the unfamiliar bed he lay in. His clothes were heavy and stained with alcohol and blood.

He sat up and pushed the heavy curtain aside and looked around the room with sudden recognition._ Hardy's house…? How did I get here?  
_  
The events from the previous night suddenly unrolled in his mind and a dead weight came and settled down on him. He sat, feeling on the verge of nausea. He wished he could've sat there for all eternity in the heat and the haze, hoping possibly that time could stand still and he would not have to go on in such dismal circumstances. This situation seems all too famaliar… He thought with a great emptiness eating away at his chest.

"Awake, finally, eh?" The door swung open with Hardy's voice. More beams of strong light flooded in. Griffin could only see the doctor's hunched silhouette in the doorway.

"Hardy…" Griffin's voice was thick.

"How're you feeling?" Hardy shut the door and hobbled over to where Griffin sat.

"Oh…fine…" Griffin lied. "Is Haru all right, do you know?" Hardy laughed and pulled out an array of instruments from the drawer beside him.

"She's absolutely fine. She went home last night after we brought you here. The little lady seemed quite distraught, though, I must say." Hardy clapped a Velcro patch around Griffin's arm and began squeezing the black ball that was attached to it rapidly. It tightened uncomfortably. "You were pretty bad off though. Silly of you really, traipsing around in broken glass. I'm surprised you made it that far after loosing all that blood…" He notated a number on a clipboard and began listening to Griffin's chest with his stethoscope.

"Well, I was about to leave Haru there all paralyzed…" Griffin protested, breathing in when instructed.

"Very good, very good." Hardy scribbled some more notes on his clip board. "Anyway, I'm pretty sure I got all the glass out. You got very lucky… it wasn't very serious despite the blood loss." Suddenly, Griffin found it hard to breath.

"Hardy… You shouldn't have done anything… I…" He throat seemed tight. "I don't have enough money to pay you…" He finished shamefully. Doctor Hardy looked up into Griffin's face honestly.

"Griffin… do you honestly think I'd make you pay for something like this…?" Griffin looked away, feeling worse by the moment. "I've known you since you were a boy. And… I know you don't want me to bring it up, but… that time was much worse that this…and I didn't make you pay then either…"

Griffin bit his lip. _I don't want to remember that…_

"Yes... I recall it well... Re-breaking the bones was the hardest part, I remember…then the surgery was a nasty business as well…" Hardy began to recite it with interest, trying his memory, but then caught sight of Griffin's face and stopped. The doctor cleared his throat and shuffled his papers. "Well, you'll be fine at any rate, just try not to put so much pressure on it and change the bandages every so often." Hardy advised.

"Thank you, Hardy. It… means a lot…" Griffin said huskily. "Drop by whenever you want, okay?"

Hardy laughed.

"You can bet I will." He said robustly. Griffin got up and shook his hand, then limped lightly through the gleaming room to the door and out into the summer afternoon.

He blinked in the sunlight and looked around. He didn't know where to go or what to do… or what was to become of his bar…

He only knew he had to find Muffy fast before the bar opened. He limped away from Hardy's house and caught site of his bar. As he approached, something caught his eyes that made his heart race. Behind the building, there was a man with a large beard replacing the broken window in the back. He rushed over as fast as he could, trying to stop him before the cost would get too high.

"Whoa, whoa!" He exclaimed in the man's direction. The man was tall and wore a white shirt that was stained with sweat.

"Can I help you, buddy?" His voice was gruff and he held a shiny new window pane in his hand.

"Hey, I own this place. I didn't call you to come fix it." He told the man with authority. He strongly did not want a huge debt added to his list of worries at the moment.

"Yeah, I know it wasn't you, buddy. Some chick called in this mornin' and commissioned it."

_Muffy…._ Griffin thought with a surge of anger. Without stooping to explain to the man, Griffin limped as fast as he could into the bar. The door was unlocked as he went in. The floor was entirely cleaned up and looked as if nothing had happened at all. Muffy was sitting at the bar alone, looking glum and exhausted, and looked up jerkily as she heard the door open.

"Griffin!" Her voice was urgent. She ran up to him and threw her arms around his neck.

"Ow, ow!" He cried out as her weight put pressure on his foot.

"Oh! Sorry!" She covered her lips with a hand. "I was worried about you!"

"Muffy, did you call that guy to come and fix the window…?" He tried not to sound harsh. She shrugged her shoulders and shook her head.

"I don't know where he came from. He just showed up and started working early this morning. Hey are you okay?" She looked concerned. Griffin sat down wearily on one of the bar stools and Muffy took up one beside him. She waited silently for a response. Griffin was finding it difficult to choose his next words.

"Muffy…" He knew what he had to do, but it certainly wasn't easy to say. "I…I have to fire you."

"What!?" She shrieked as leapt to her feet. "F-fire me?" Her lip was quivering. He couldn't bear to look at her.

"I'm so sorry… but I can't pay you… I don't know if you saw, but that Skye took all my money last night…" It was very hard to speak of what was lost. Muffy stood stokc still, looking pale.

"I-I…" Her voice was weak. "Griffin…" Her tall shoes clopped on the hard wood floor and she walked over to him. She placed a hand on his back, but he still couldn't look at her.

"Can I ask a favor?" She requested in a very small voice.

"What is it?" Griffin finally was able to look up at her. Tears were welled up in her luminescent green eyes. She looked like she was planning carefully what to say next.

"It's just… I love living here… I love working here…" She started explaining. "I can't bear the thought of leaving…"

"Yeah…" Griffin urged her on, wondering what she might want.

"And… It would be great if… I mean…" Her hair, usually vibrant and bouncy, now hung lifeless around her face in tired, pale tendrils. "Can you please just let me work here without paying me?" She finally asked in one fast voice. Griffin stared at her. "Please… This is my home." She finished with finality.

"You wanna work for no pay?" Griffin was shocked. Muffy still looked at him imploringly.

"Well, not forever. Just until we get back on our feet. But you can't fire me, you just can't!" She pleaded. "Please…"

Griffin felt more emotional than he let his face show as he looked at Muffy's begging glance. He shrugged.

"Well, if that's what you want."

"Oh, thank you, thank you!" She hugged him again, then jumped back and twirled around. She looked very pleased and relieved. "We'll, get through it all right! I'll work twice as hard!" She sounded quite determined. Griffin smiled weakly.

"Well, that's settled." He felt relieved as well. He honestly felt that living alone again after what had happened would be more than he could handle. "I'll work hard too…" He looked up at the remaining bottles on the shelf and studied the labels. It wasn't as bad as he'd thought. A lot of the good ones had been spared from getting smashed and it was definitely enough to keep the bar running until he could restock. _I won't let this place go out of business if it kills me…What would my grandpa think of me if I did? _he pondered.

"Anyway…" Muffy pulled Griffin from his thoughts. "What are we gonna do about him?" She pointed her thumb towards the back room where the man could be seen fixing the window. Griffin got up and signaled for her to follow. They both went back outside and halted the man's work once more. He seemed greatly annoyed by this.

"Excuse me sir, but we don't have the money to pay for the work you're doing… neither of us called, so I'm still confused as to why you're here at all…" Griffin began. The man just blinked at him in the sunlight.

"The payment's already been taken care of." The carpenter told him as if it was obvious. "The commissioner paid when I got here… I thought she told you." Muffy and Griffin exchanged bewildered glances.

"Um, do you remember the name of the person who called, by any chance…?" Muffy piped up warily. The man thought for a moment.

"I forget her name, but she lives right over there on that farm. She told me you were friends."

_Haru!? _Griffin thought as the man pointed towards the farm. Muffy gasped and turned towards Griffin.

"Am I right to think he's talking about Haru?" She looked dumbfounded. The man seemed to give up and went back to working.

Haru wiped her brow. She stood back, with her hoe in hand and admired her handiwork. Fourteen patches of onions planted in a single afternoon. She gazed out proudly at her garden that was alive and growing before her eyes. Rows and rows of golden corn and ripening tomatoes hung heavy on the branches, vibrantly reflecting the sun's powerful rays. Beyond her wide expanse of crops was the pasture which she'd planted and tended to all by herself. Three fat cows munched the tall stalks of grass and lazily strolled along in the heat. The buys clucking of chickens could be heard from all around the farm. She dusted off her jeans and gathered her tools before walking carefully between the tender new onion seeds. As she made her way through the rows, two figures entered her farm from a distance. She squinted through the waves of heat and shaded her eyes. It was much too early for the Mayor to collect the shipping….

Climbing the slope up to the farm was Griffin and Muffy. Muffy held a small, pink cardboard box in her hands and was proudly humming. Griffin had made an inexplicable effort not to visit Haru's farm up to this point. He wasn't sure why he wanted to avoid it, because a large part of himself really wanted to see the transformation that had occurred first hand. Somehow though, the thought of going there had always seemed made him feel powerfully ill with wistfulness. He couldn't figure out his own feelings half the time, but now felt excited and anxious as he stepped onto the bright green grass that rolled in waves with the summer wind.

"Oh, look!" Muffy pointed to the rows of vegetables that were growing off a ways. "It's amazing, isn't it?" She was jittery with excitement. "This place was empty before last spring…now it feels really…" She searched for a word.

"Alive?" Griffin offered, looking out happily at the bustling farm. It was much nicer than he'd imagined. The hum of insects was heavy in the air.

"Oh look, there she is!" Muffy pointed to a freshly plowed area of land. Haru was jogging towards them, waving excitedly with her ponytails bouncing merrily as she went.

"Hey, Haru!" Muffy called out across the distances between them. Haru walked up to them with a smile. Muffy went in for a hug, but Haru stopped her.

"I've just fertilized the ground." She explained with mirth in her voice. "It's nice of you guys to finally visit! Come on in!" She went over to her house and opened the door. It was inviting and cool inside. They all went in and looked around the nicely decorated house. What had once been a decrepit empty room was now a cute little cottage complete with kitchen and bathroom. Haru's bed had a fluffy pink coverlet and a few stuffed animals tossed about on top of it. A diary rested on a beside table pushed directly up beside her bed. Griffin had the strange urge to read it and quickly looked away.

"So, are you guys okay?" Haru brought up the events of last night finally. "What happened… it was crazy…" Her voice became darker. Muffy nodded, still holding the little pink box. Haru looked at Griffin soulfully and he couldn't meet her glance. He vaguely remember saying something incredibly stupid to her before he passed out. "I was really worried about you, Griffin."

Griffin felt his face get very warm, and he somehow knew it wasn't from the summer heat.

"I'm fine… it wasn't a big deal or anything…" He scratched his scruffy head.

"Yeah, spending the night in the hospital isn't a big deal at all." Muffy said cynically.

"You're okay, right? It wasn't anything serious?" Haru asked Griffin.

"Oh, no… It's fine…" He stammered, feeling awkwardly happy all of a sudden.

"Oh my goodness!" Muffy exclaimed suddenly. "What a cute little kitty!" A sleek black cat stood in the corner of Haru's kitchen, sniffing around and watching the visitors warily. Muffy cooed and tiptoed in it's direction, trying to coax it towards her. Griffin looked up at Haru, who was giggling while watching Muffy petting her cat.

"Hey, Haru…" Griffin spoke softly. He didn't really want Muffy to hear him. "You didn't have to go and pay for the window, you know…" His voice was very grateful. She looked up at him honestly.

"And you didn't have to go and let your fortune get stolen away all because I got in the way." She retorted, her voice also soft and low. "I couldn't just sit back and do nothing after all you did for me…" She smiled very sweetly and Griffin felt his heart leap. He felt a rush of gratitude towards Haru which caused him to expeirence a complete loss of words. He ended up just staring at her for a few moments, trying to think of something to say.

"What is going on over here?" Muffy popped up beside them both, looking overly excited at catching the two of them staring deeply at each other. They both cleared their throats and looked away. There was pink on Haru's cheeks as well as Griffin's.

"I was just thanking her for paying for the window." Griffin explained.

"Oh! That reminds me!" Muffy pranced over to Haru and presented her with the small pink box. "I made it for you! To say thanks and stuff." Muffy stood very proud as Haru unwrapped a sloppily frosted cake with a strawberry on top.

"Oh, Muffy thank you!" She looked genuinely happy. Griffin wondered if he should warn her about Muffy's cooking, but decided against it.

"Actually, that reminds me too." Haru told Muffy. "I have something for you as well." She went over to her bookshelf and pulled something papery out.

"Yesterday before I came to meet you guys, someone wearing a funny sort of cloak came up to me and asked me if I knew you, Muffy. He asked me to give you these." Haru stepped over slowly, holding out her hand. Muffy's face went stony and her body shook in little tremors as she caught sight of what was in Haru's hands.

"No…"

In Haru's hands was a collection of carefully sealed envelopes, all with Muffy's name written on the front.


	8. Music From the Darkness

**Chapter 8**

**Music From the Darkness**

The next few weeks were hard ones. As the heat intensified, so did Griffin's anxiety about losing his bar. Nights were slow and it was hard to keep from looking desperately at customers and silently beg them to buy another drink. Griffin couldn't remember another time when he'd pushed more alcohol on people. He almost felt like a bad influence.

After each long night, Griffin would stay up until the early hours of the morning arranging his funds and planning carefully about which items to restock with. The first trip to Mineral Town was a depressing one. He knew that Doug would have sold him alcohol for cheaper if he'd told him the situation, but he was not one to place his problems on other people.

With all the finance issues, Griffin was finding it very difficult to sleep at night as well. There were times when he'd stay up until the misty dawn would creep in through the windows. A few times, he had grown so frustrated with sitting restless in bed all night that he stepped out into the cool morning air to see the golden disc that was the sun creep over the lavender colored mountains. Seeing the pale yellow sky at dawn almost served to soothe his worries. It was nice to sit in the quiet, blue mornings and watch the world come to life. It was this time before the chaos of the day that Griffin was most at ease. It was in those benign hours that he could only truly forget his troubles and empty his troublesome mind, however exhausted and sleep deprived he felt.

It was on one such morning, when the grass shone with fresh, glittering morning dew and rose color clouds drifted over the gentle ocean spray, that Griffin curiously stepped over to the threshold of Haru's ranch. The cows were coming out of a sleepy stupor in the pasture and the crops shone like dull jewels through the pale air. Chickens were cawing and bickering amongst themselves, pecking feverishly at the ground for insects. The smells of earth and mist were lightly hanging on the breeze. Though Griffin was looking at the ranch itself, he could only think of the owner.

As the days went on, a terrifying notion had begun to grip him. What was it about this woman that so penetrated his thoughts the way no other had for so many long years? He did not want to think for a minute that his dusty old heart had begun to act up again. In the beginning he had tried to chock it up to admiration. Simple admiration of a woman working an entire ranch on her own. _Who wouldn't be impressed? _He tried to rationalize with himself. _It's nothing but admiration for a hardworking individual… _

But as he stared out at the fields that woman toiled in tirelessly day after day, he felt like he was lying to himself about the entire thing.

_That just sounds like a young, hot-blooded kid talking… _He thought bitterly, thinking of the slight possibly that it could be more than admiration. _Haven't I learned that lesson?  
_  
He looked from the waking ranch that was wrapped in the swirling mists of the dawn to his shoes.

_Yes, I have learned that lesson. I learned it the hard way… And I swore I'd never let it happen again, didn't I?_ He sighed deeply, lost in thought.

Anxiety and hardship weighed down on him as he stood motionless in the road between her ranch and the rest of the world. Through the calm air came the sound of a door creaking open.

"Good morning, everyone!" Came a cheerful voice. As soon as Griffin heard her come out, he darted behind a tall hill that blocked him from her view. He could just catch sight of her from this position.

"It's a nice day, isn't it Mocha?" She appeared to be talking to her cow as she brushed it. It mooed back pleasantly. _I feel like a stalker… _Griffin thought as he watched her milk and groom the cows from a distance. But somehow he couldn't get up and walk away.

_Just admiration, huh?_ said a nasty voice in the back of his head. This striking thought was enough to get him to move with haste from his position and trudge back to the bar, feeling utterly defeated.

_Ok, so what?_ He conceded, as he opened the door and went inside. _Nobody has to know… It'll fade with time, anyway…  
_  
He lay back on his bed, feeling guilty and ashamed. _I have to erase this feeling as soon as I can… It's wrong… I'm so much older than her… Just gotta erase it…_

This thought proved to be the most depressing of all.

--

Raucous laughter shook the ceiling of the bar. A red-faced Gustafa doubled over along with Marlin, Dr. Hardy, and Carter. Muffy giggled to herself behind the bar.

"Did she really do that?" She asked Carter incredulously. Carter caught his breath.

"She truly did! I couldn't believe my eyes! So after that, I knew that I had to hire her for the time being at least!" A second eruption of laughter rattled the walls. A lonely business man who was called Grant sat sullenly in corner, downing his drinks with a fiercely morose look.

Griffin atomically refilled his glass. Even if Grant didn't want anymore, it was going to be time to restock soon and there was going to be enough. As the laughter died, the three men called for a another round and Griffin gladly complied.

_Maybe there will be enough, after all…_ He thought with a smile.

"Wow, Carter… It must be interesting living with her…" Gustafa took a deep breath, trying to fight of falling into another bout of snickers. Carter shrugged and smiled broadly. He was already intoxicated.

"She's very kind and helpful… but her cooking… it's literally unbearable…"

"You should try Celia's cooking!" Marlin shouted before downing his glass and slamming it down on the counter. "Another, please! Man, I tell you… Celia would make a fantastic wife…" He said wistfully. Marlin could hold his liquor quite well and was not yet slurring his words. "But I doubt she'll ever come around… Hell, I'll probably be alone until the end of time…" He said bitterly as Griffin refilled his glass. He felt a little annoyed at Marlin, but said nothing.

"What are you talking about, you're still young, you've got loads of time!" Gustafa told him.

"If I had a gold piece for every time somebody said that to me!" Carter roared in Gustafa's direction.

"Now I'm nearly fifty and still alone…" "Oh, shush up. You're practically married anyway…" The playful bickering continued on for a few more minutes. Grant still sat silent and miserable in the corner. Subjects changed from complaints about love, to complaints about work, then finally to complaints about the heat. Eventually there was a sleepy, drunken lull in the conversation.

"Hey, Griffin… how about it…" Gustafa piped up drowsily. "Will you play us a song tonight? It's been so long since you last picked up that old guitar, I miss hearing you play…" Griffin scratched his chin, weighing the idea.

"Well…" He said slowly, thinking. Suddenly everyone sat up excitedly, awaiting his answer. Muffy was looking up at him with wide, hopeful eyes. Even Grant had come out of his emotional cloud. Griffin couldn't help but laugh. "Ok, ok!" He told them all. This had broken the spell of sleepiness. There was a refreshed bout of cheering.

"Don't expect much!" He told them all as he went into the backroom to grab his old guitar. It was most likely permanently out of tune from being neglected so long. As he picked it up, he felt the energy of the old instrument flow into him. They had seen so much together. A sort of proud happiness made Griffin smile as he carried the white guitar back to the bar, dusting it off as he went. There was excited chatter waiting for him in the front of the room.

"Ok, got it…" Griffin said as he stepped into the bar. "Lemme tune it for a se- Haru!"

Haru was standing near the door, looking very eager with a smile on her face.

"She just got in!" Gustafa explained, "Lucky for her!"

"Ooh, Haru, you're in for a treat!" Muffy was glowing.

"I can't wait!" Haru sat down and filled the last empty stool at the bar. "I always wanted to hear you play, Griffin! Don't disappoint me…" She told him through the chatter. At once Griffin felt frantically nervous. He was reminded vividly of the time he first played publicly for a large audience.

"Eh, these guys make it to be more than what it is. Don't get too excited…" Griffin was focused on tuning the guitar. He twanged the old strings until they all harmonically agreed. "All right, here I go…" He said softly. There was an immediate hush. He purposefully looked away from Haru's face. She made him feel so anxious.

He closed his eyes and let his fingers speak for themselves. A sweet, jazzy melody sang out from the old instrument and filled the bar like warm sunshine. With each pluck of a string the melody grew within them all. Griffin felt the familiarity of the tune flow out easily, as if he'd been practicing it every day. With growing confidence, he began to show off with extra trills and added riffs. Each note was more beautiful than the last, making the sound song as new and enchanting as the first time he'd ever heard it. The song swelled and spun as he reached the bridge. He chanced a look at their faces and found them all to bear an expression of enraptured attention. Griffin felt his worries an encumberments seem to travel away from him as his fingers slid back and forth across the steal strings. He finished the song off with a perfectly executed solo that impressed even himself.

The bar exploded with applause and cheering. He laughed bashfully and put the guitar down on the ground, feeling as if he'd truly played his soul out. His fingers were sore and red since his calluses had long since disappeared.

"That was fantastic…" Gustafa was genuinely pleased. "I wish I could play like you, Griffin…"

"Well done, well done!" Carter shouted at him. They all looked and sounded refreshed as they yelled out compliments. Griffin felt happier than he had in a long time.

"That was really beautiful…" Haru's voice stuck out from all the others. Griffin turned to attend her. "I've never heard anything like it… I'm really impressed." Her eyes were full of stars.

"I'm… very happy you think so…" Griffin told her honestly.

"How come you're here tending this bar, man?" Marlin asked him incredulously. "You could totally play professionally!" Griffin laughed, feeling the happiness drain from him slightly.

"I did play professionally before…" He told Marlin, trying to keep his voice down.

"So you were a rock star!" Muffy shouted victoriously. "I knew it!"

The rest of the evening wore on late. Haru finally tasted a drink Griffin made and was very satisfied. The chatter rose and fell and everyone had fun telling old stories from their lives. The customers left one by one into the night, all swaggering from the extra drinks Griffin had pushed on them. Haru seemed to be quite enjoying herself and drank more than enough to make her quite drunk.

"And… I…_ Always _have to… feed… that cow…._twice_ a day!" Her words were slurred and she bore a lopsided smile. Marlin, who was still quite clear minded laughed at her softly.

"I think it's time we got you home, Haru." He suggested good-naturedly. "You've had enough."

"Aahhh…. Hic… I don't need to go sober, I'm still perfectly home!" She protested. Marlin picked her up by her arm gently. "Oh… no fair…" She stumbled around, pulling out her coin purse.

"You'll get her home, right Marlin?" Griffin asked, his voice sounding protective.

"Course I will." Marlin assured them. Griffin had a sudden urge to tell him to get lost and that he was gonna take Haru home, but he quieted the thought as quickly as it came, cursing himself. Haru fumbled in her purse and slammed an array of coins on the bar.

"Thanks for the drinks and the music, Griffin!" She beamed at him dewily. "Bye bye, Muffy!" She was still shouting thanks as Marlin dragged her out of the door.

"Phew… Long night!" Muffy exhaled as they left. "It's hard to stay past closing time…" She started tiding up. Griffin went to the door to lock it, but found there was something wedged in the door keeping it open. He opened the door wider to remove it, then bent down and picked up what looked like Haru's coin purse.

"Hey, isn't this Haru's?" He showed it to Muffy. "Oh, jeez. That's her wallet." Muffy told him. "She'll be needing it back."

"I'll bring it to her tomorrow." Griffin pocketed it. He turned back towards the door and received a terrible shock. A tall man with a hood over his face was standing just outside the door, looking in quietly. Adrenaline hit Griffin hard and he gasped shortly.

"Whoa, buddy. You nearly gave me a heart attack…" He told the man who was slowly approaching him.

"Is the bar still open?" The man asked in a low rumbling voice.. He had a large nose and pale, sallow lips, but his eyes were shrouded by the dingy green hood. Dark mangy hair fell around his chin. "No, 'fraid we're closed." Griffin told him, sensing a slight air of danger. There was something eerily familiar about him that Griffin couldn't put his finger on.

"Does a girl named Muffy work here?" The man pressed on with force. Griffin eyed him warily, trying to shut the door enough to block Muffy from sight. "Who's asking?" He interrogated the stranger, looking defensive.

"Give her this…" The man growled, shoving a heavy sheaf of paper into Griffin's hands roughly. Upon inspection, Griffin saw it was an envelope identical to the ones that had so plagued Muffy before.

"Hey!" Griffin shouted at him, but the man took off running into the wild gloom of the night. Feeling extremely on edge, Griffin shut the door with a snap, locked it and turned back towards the bar. To his surprise, Muffy was nowhere to be seen.

"Muffy?" Griffin called her warily. "Where are you?" He heard a scuffling behind the door and a teary-eyed Muffy poked her head out.

"Is he gone?" She braved in a quivering tone. Griffin moved over to her quickly.

"Yeah, he's gone." He told her comfortingly as he went with her into the back room. She was shaking from head to toe. "Sit down…" Griffin instructed her, trying to keep his voice cool and comforting for her sake. He pushed the envelope onto the table between them and Muffy flinched away from it.

"Get it away from me!" She yelped, desperately trying not to melt into tears. Griffin removed it from her sight.

Griffin gave her an imploringly expectant look. It seemed too serious to ignore at this point. Muffy covered her face and began to sob.

"A-all right… I'll t-tell you!"


	9. Muffy's Admirer

Chapter 9

**Muffy's Admirer**

Muffy sniffled and took a deep breath.

"I really hoped that if I kept ignoring him… he'd just go away…" Her voice was pinched. "But I'm beginning to think this is much more serious than I had thought…"

Griffin looked her over. She was a mess. She sat back in the wooden chair, looking weary as she gazed out the window with wide eyes.  
"Who was that guy?" Griffin prodded her to continue. Muffy's expression was very sober and hardened, much unlike her usual airy and feminine disposition.

"I don't even know what his name really is…" She began. "We met each other in Mineral Town back… back in the early spring I think it was…" She squinted as she was remembering. "You sent me to get some more sherry and vodka, I think, but it had gotten late so I stopped off at the Inn for some dinner…"

Griffin searched his memory for this event. It seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn't remember any details.

"So, while I was eating I saw that weird guy sitting with two other people, a man and woman. He caught sight of me and came over right away and started hitting on me. Obviously, I let him know I wasn't interested, but he kept pushing on… Then he started telling me stupid lies about how he was famous and rich and trying to persuade me to go out with him…"

"I hope you refused!" Griffin remarked.

"Of course I said no!" Muffy was affronted in her delicate stage, "Anyway, after that I started getting creeped out, so I got up to leave. And goodness knows, he followed me straight out the door. He kept asking why I had so much alcohol and making stupid jokes that I was a drunk, or something. I was getting really scared, so I just screamed at him that I worked in a bar." She swallowed and started getting a little choked up. "So… then… as I started to climb that sort of lonely hill that leads to the Valley, he suddenly pinned me up against the cliff and demanded that I tell him my name…"

Griffin felt a icy shiver. It was disconcerting to think that this had happened to her and she hadn't told anyone… especially him.  
"I was so scared, I just told him my name… and that seemed to quiet him down…" She seemed to be remembering it vividly by the look on her face. "And after all that he just left… I just remember running home as fast as I could…"

Griffin blinked. He wasn't sure what it had to do with daunting envelopes, but he let her continue.

"I had hoped that was the end of it, but one night I found an envelope on the doorstep. I had no idea who it was from, so I opened and read it…"

"What was inside…?" Griffin asked, feeling suspense mounting.

"It was some sort of lunatic love letter… He identified himself as the man I'd met before and he was asking me to come meet him someplace. So I wrote a replay message saying I never wanted to see him ever and to leave me alone…I guess he just found out where I lived by checking all the bars in this area..."

"But why are you so scared of the letters…?" Griffin was confused. Feeling uncomfortable at a unwanted love letter was one thing, but why was she so disturbed by it? Muffy hesitated and looked queasy.

"It's because… he wouldn't stop writing… and it turned from raving love letters to something much more… horrible…" She looked near tears again. "He started saying that he was going to… f-find me and… kidnap me and do all sorts of awful things… those letters were pages and p-pages of… w-ways he said he was going to hurt me…" He voice was a frantic whisper. Griffin felt deeply disquieted at hearing this.

"Why didn't you tell me about this!?" He asked her urgently. She shook her head from side to side.

"I don't know… I don't know…" Her face was shining with tears. "… I'm r-really scared…" His insides reeling, Griffin put a comforting arm around Muffy as she sobbed. He was utterly disconcerted.

"Listen, that creep isn't gonna dare get anywhere near you! I can't stand guys like that… if he ever shows his face around here again I won't think twice… You really should have told me…" His voice dropped into a helpless sort of diminuendo.

That night proved to be long and uncomfortable. Muffy went to bed shortly after she told Griffin her story. She looked weak and thin as she climbed the ladder to her room, her eyes swimming with thought.

Griffin sighed in his solitude. Throughout the dark hours of the night, he felt he couldn't let himself sleep for fear that the hooded stranger might make his return. He had promised Muffy protection, but deep down he was worried about what might happen. He was a worn-out, tired and malnourished man… and he knew he had no chance in any sort of fight… But tonight he was a gray sentinel, standing quiet watch against what could possibly be lurking in the shadows and the gloom of the wild world beyond.

"I'll only be gone a moment…" Griffin told Muffy at the door. "Just gotta go give this back to Haru." He held up the purse.

"If you're not back by four should I open the bar without you? I can serve the simple drinks, you know…" Muffy told him, watching he skeptical face.

"Well, I think it'd be better if you waited for me…" Griffin's countenance darkened slightly. Muffy looked convinced.

"All right, well don't be long! Oh! Wait a sec, I've been meaning to ask you… are you gonna go to the Fireworks Show tomorrow night?" Griffin stopped in midturn and considered her request.

"Mmmm… maybe… why's that?" Griffin asked her. Muffy smiled broadly.

"Because Akira is coming in from Mineral Town… I was going to ask you if Haru and Akira could meet up here and we all could go together… but if you weren't gonna go, it seemed a little imposing…" Griffin smiled. Muffy was always predictable.

"Sure, I'll go with you guys…" Griffin agreed amiably. Muffy bounced on her heels.

"Make sure to let Haru know that she's can join us when you're there, okay?"

"Sure…" Griffin waved at Muffy and stepped away from the front door and into the pathway. It was the absolute hottest day of the year. The scorching sun baked down on the entire valley. Several people were playing in the cool ocean off in the distance. Griffin could see Gustafa lying miserably back against a tree, fanning himself with his large hat. Most everyone was inside, trying to keep out of the blazing heat.

Forget Me Not valley was generally a mild place, but it could become terribly hot like this during the late summer. Griffin walked up towards Haru's farm, feeling the effects of the heat bearing down on him. It was exhausting do anything in this weather. Griffin could only barely feel happy that he was about to go meet Haru on account of the temperature. He had come to terms with his feelings quietly over the last few weeks… He decided it was best to enjoy their friendship for what it was and never try and make it anything more than that… at least that's what he'd try, anyway…

_I gotta stop thinking about her..._ Griffin told himself in the vacant street that led to Haru's farm. He still couldn't help from feeling a bit excited as he rounded the corner and climbed the slope that led up to her ranch. He walked up calmly to her door, wiping his brow and sighing in the intense sunshine.

He knocked. Then waited. After a few moments of waiting, he knocked again. Still no answer.

"That's funny…" He spoke aloud, peering out in the pasture. There was no one but the cows standing in the pasture. Waves of heat created and shimmering mirage in the distance.

He wandered around closer to the vegetable patch and looked around for any sign of Haru. He stood bewildered at the emptiness of the ranch. Maybe she was out?

He looked down at the purse in his hands. It was made from a cute plaid material and had a tiny plastic cherry sewn onto the end of the draw string which held it shut.

Griffin grinned wryly. He thought it was funny how a mature and independent woman still liked cute things like that. He gave the pasture and vegetable patch one last look over before deciding to go back to the bar. Just as he turned around to leave, he heard an out of place rustling among to tall stalks of corn. He turned back. Everything was as still as it was before.

After hesitating for a moment, Griffin thought it would be best to take a closer look. He stepped in between the rows of corn into a sort of shady hiding place from the rest of the world. Hot beams of white light contrasted with the gray shadows that fell from the stalks, creating a striped look on the dry earth below. Griffin peered down the long aisle of stalks. Somewhere near the end and brown, funny shaped object stuck out. He stepped closer, trying to identify the object. As he got with in arm's length of it, he saw that it was actually a shoe complete with a leg attached.

He scurried around it to see Haru lying supine on the ground with crushed stalks and ears of corn beneath her. She was completely still and her scythe lay beside her, her fingers laced weakly around the handle.

"Haru!" Griffin yelped, kneeling beside her. "Hey, wake up!" He shook her gently. She stirred and her eyelids fluttered slightly, but she wouldn't wake up.

"Oh, no! Agh… What should I do…?" Griffin thought aloud frantically. Gnawing on his fingernail fiercely, his mind was racing. _Should I carry her in…? Or would that seem too weird…?_

He looked at her lying completely motionless on the ground and gave in. He wasn't about to leave her lying unconscious in this terrible heat. So, he gently picked her up from the ground and moved out from the corn stalks. He got her through the vegetable patch and to her house as fast as he could without shaking her around too much. Her head bobbed limply from side to side as they went along and she felt overly warm in his arms. Eventually they reached the door which Griffin kicked open to get inside.

It was mercifully cool in Haru's house when he carried her in. Straining, he carried her over to the bed and laid her down gently on top of her coverlet, then went back to close the door.

Haru had begun to take deeper breaths and move around a bit. Her forehead was glistening with perspiration.

"Haru, can you hear me?" Griffin asked her, standing a ways off so as not to make her feel uncomfortable. She stirred and gave a soft moan, then opened her mouth and pulled in a few dry breaths.

"Nnn…" She moaned, "Where… what happened…?" Her throat sounded terribly dry and she gave a few sputtering coughs. Griffin got a little closer so that she could see he was there.

"Hey! Are you all right? You collapsed in your field! I came to bring you your purse back and I saw you lying in the field unconscious…" He informed her as he set the purse down on her beside table. Her lavender eyes seemed hazy and worried as they caught sight of his face.

"I collapsed?" She repeated, looking concerned. Griffin knelt at her bedside as she sat up, still red faced and shaking. "I was just so worn out… I stayed up way too late last night, but I couldn't ignore my plants…"

"You shouldn't push yourself in this crazy heat. What would've happened if I hadn't of come along?" He reprimanded her in a very mild and sympathetic tone. She looked slightly ashamed.

"I'm glad you did come along..." She still sounded far away. Griffin furrowed his brow.

"You probably weren't drinking enough fluids an passed out from heat exhaustion…" Griffin told her gently. "Can I make you a drink?" Haru looked up at him, a bit more alert.

"Oh… Isn't it a lot of trouble? I wouldn't want to-"

Griffin smiled at her wryly.

"I'm a bartender, remember? I can mix drinks in my sleep practically. Rest right there, I won't be a minute." He told her and went over to her kitchen. Haru smiled contentedly and lay back down, fanning herself with her hand.

"Thanks…" She said, her voice soft. Griffin was smiling as he mixed together fruit juices and ice in Haru's kitchen, then brought it over to her.

"Here you go… Dehydration can be a real problem if you let it go, especially in this heat…" Haru drank from the glass with gusto, draining it in one go. She looked refreshed after finishing it. Griffin laughed at her eagerness.

"I didn't realize how thirsty I was.." Haru smiled sheepishly, "That was great! Your drinks are always the best!"

"You like it?" He took the empty glass from her and went over to the sink to wash it. "It's one of my favorites, too. My dad used to make it for me and my mom when it got really hot. The taste always reminds me of my younger days…"

"Was your dad a bartender, too?" Haru asked. Griffin was surprised to hear she sounded genuinely interested.

"Yeah… my Grandfather and he taught me everything I know. I still use some of their recipes to this day."

"Wow, an entire family in the trade! Why doesn't your dad work out here with you?" Haru asked, tilting her head. Griffin laughed soberly.

"I haven't seen him since I was twelve years old…" Griffin told her, pulling over a chair to Haru's bedside and sitting in it. She looked curious, but slightly distressed.

"Did he-"

"He walked out on my mom because she was cheating on him… Then my mom dumped me out here in the Valley with my grandfather and that was the last I saw of either of them…" Griffin explained. He didn't sound depressed or hurt, more vaguely nostalgic.

"I'm… sorry…" Haru apologized. The look on her face showed that she felt she had asked too much. Griffin gave her a reassuring grin.

"Don't be. It's ancient history by now, anyway." Griffin waved it off. He had had years and years to get over it. Haru looked a bit more comfortable.

"I didn't really know my dad much, either." She confided in him, "He died when I was pretty small. But it's because of him me and my brother became farmers." She said as-a-matter-of-factly.

"Oh?" Griffin wanted to hear more. He was very interested in her reasons for choosing such a life.

"Yeah, it was always his dream to farm. He would always tell me and my brother about the high-life of ranching and how him and Takakura - you know Takakura, right?"

"I've known him for years and years! I had no idea he knew your father." Haru nodded accordingly.

"Yeah, they were the best of friends. They wanted to farm together on this very ranch, but my dad died before he could realize his dream. So me and Akira set out to do it for him! I always like to imagine him watching me and smiling at the hard work I do." Haru finished with an air of determination. She looked much more alert and ready. Griffin gave her a soft, incredulous smile.

"Well, that's a very nice story. I'm really glad you got to realize your dream. I hope farming is always good for you…"

"I really love it!" Haru told him excitedly, "It's so nice every morning to wake up and work hard here. I never want to leave this place… never ever." She closed her eyes comfortably as she spoke. It was very relaxing and comforting to hear Haru talk about her dreams. Griffin began to feel complacent.

"You better stay in bed for the rest of today… I think your plants should be fine for one day." Griffin advised. "I'm sorry to leave so soon, but I got a bar to run…" He said, remembering the time. "Make sure to drink lots of water! Oh, and Muffy wanted me to tell you that you can meet up at the bar tomorrow night with all of us." Haru nodded happily as Griffin began to walk out of the door.

"Hey, Griffin." Haru got his attention as he was about to step out.

"Hm?"

"Thanks for saving me again." She thanked him sweetly, a mellow smile on her lips. Griffin returned her smile shyly.

"Anytime…"

Feeling on top of the world, Griffin grabbed the door knob and was about to step out, when he saw a brilliant bouquet of flowers on a small table by the door. Sticking out of the colorful display was a square of paper bearing a note.

_To my beautiful Haru,  
Phantom Skye_

Griffin's euphoric feeling vanished in a fluttering instant. Not wanting Haru to notice, he stepped out quickly and shut the door behind him, feeling empty and completely alone.


	10. If Only

Chapter 10

**If Only**

A loud popping and sputtering floated in the air. Playful shrieks and laughter accompanied the far-off sounds of the cicadas singing away all over the valley.

"Ooh, try this one next! It looks really good…"

"Ahh, I'm a little scared… ok, I'm gonna light it." Haru's voice called from a ways off.

"Kyaaa!" Muffy laughed while she yelled, the two girls trotted away from the erupting firecrackers. The rocket shaped vessel emitted a shower of star-bright sparkles that remained on Griffin's eyes long after they disappeared. Akira and Griffin stood a far ways off from where Haru and Muffy were lighting the small fireworks.

"That one was really pretty!" Haru commented. "Do we have any more?" Muffy looked inside the box.

"Awww... that was the last one." She told Haru, picking the box up and bringing it in.

"Hey, girls! I think we should get going, it's going to start soon." Akira approached Muffy and Haru. Muffy immediately set the box down inside and hopped over to Akira's side.

"Yeah, let's go, I don't want to miss a moment!" Her face was shining with delight. The early evening had become velvety and a little humid, which was a nice contrast to the severe heat of the day. Akira and Haru had arrived when the heat was the most unbearable. The four of them had spent the day socializing at the Blue Bar. Haru had brought fresh vegetables and other ingredients and Akira had cooked them up a magnificent summer feast.

"Yeah, we should probably go soon." Griffin said, locking the door carefully. Even admits all the merrymaking and drinking they had done previously, he paid special attention to keeping the bar locked up tight. He didn't want to take any chances in light of the circumstances…

"Thanks so much for making us dinner, Aki." Haru thanked her brother as they all set off down the pathway to the beach. There was already a good-sized crowd accumulating on the sparkling shores. A pink and powder blue arrangement of clouds painted the sky at the horizon where the shimmering sun was just sinking below the waves. Delicious smells of grilled cooking and smoke from fireworks hung in the air with the dying heat. The hum of insects got louder and louder as they passed underneath the trees until it became an all-encompassing force, then slowly faded away as they passed over the shadows of the bows.

"Oh, it was nothing! It was a pleasure to cook for you guys. Thank you for providing us with such wonderful vegetables, Haru." He laughed a little, his mild voice calm and pleasant in the sultry evening air. "And thank Griffin for letting us drink up all his beers!"

They all walked along side-by-side, feeling satisfyingly tipsy.

"It's nice to meet a man who can cook! That's a very rare and desirable quality." Muffy spoke to Akira directly, her cheeks tinted pink.

_Ahh… the ever subtle Muffy…_ Griffin thought contentedly as the two flirted beside him. Haru looked at the trees above them with a secret smile on her lips. Griffin could tell she found their banter as humorous as he did. The day had gone wonderfully, but there was something that made Griffin feel strangely melancholy as he walked, observing the pastel sky sink into deep blue. Stars twinkled delicately out from the heavens.

Griffin watched Haru from the corner of his eye while she strolled along, complacently taking in the fabulous sunset. Muffy and Akira separated them, chatting fervently. Deep inside his heart, Griffin longed to suavely step up beside Haru and stroll close beside her, but he knew he had not the courage nor the confidence to even try.

Every time he thought of trying something to capture her attention, it just seemed to him to be too forward.

_She wouldn't want someone as old as me, anyway._ He thought, his face still and unreadable. _Not when she's got Phantom Skye…  
_This was another thing. The fact that she might be involved with the thief who was causing him so much trouble was very bothersome to him. It had caused Griffin a considerable amount of silent distress since yesterday afternoon.

But today had gone extremely well and it was the first time in a long time that Griffin had felt truly at ease and lighthearted.

_It's so nice to see her smile and laugh…_ Griffin thought to himself, a small smile playing beneath his mustache.

"Griffin's always lost in thought…" A voice interrupted his quiet pondering. Haru appeared beside Griffin's elbow. He felt his heart begin to beat slightly faster and somehow knew it wasn't from exercise.

"Ha ha. Yeah…" He couldn't think of anything else to say. Muffy broke into a chorus of laughter at something Akira had just said.

"They seem to be getting on well." Haru observed quietly to Griffin who nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, she won't stop going on about him. I'm glad she's interested in a nice guy like Akira… She's been waiting for someone like him to come along for a while."

"They are very public about the whole courting issue, though." Haru spoke with mirth, but not loud enough to attract their attention. Griffin smiled with her and nodded in agreement.

"Ahh, we made it finally! It hasn't even started yet!" Muffy sang excitedly. "Come on, Akira, let's find a nice spot." She linked arms with Akira who accompanied her through the sea of chatting people who were sitting all over the sand waiting for the show to begin.

"Wait for me!" Haru called after the pair, jogging behind them. Griffin stood alone, looking out at the crowds around him. Rock was chatting up a gaggle of girls which included Lumina while his mother watched a ways off with a slight air of disapproval. Little Hugh and his parents all sat comfortably together near the shore awaiting the show. Kate, Grant's small daughter, marched up to Hugh from behind and pushed him playfully. All around were people who were visiting from other towns talking animatedly to one another.

"Hey Griffin!" Came a voice from behind him. Carter, Flora, Marlin and Cody the Artist who lived near the pond were gathered around Gustafa. Griffin walked amiably up and joined their group.

"Hey guys. What's up?" He asked coolly.

"We didn't think you were going to come tonight! Good to see you." Carter patted Griffin on the back.

"Gustafa's about to ask Nami to watch with him." Cody informed him in his deep, smooth voice.

"He's gonna chicken out." Marlin said confidently.

"No way, man. I got this… it's gonna be groovy." Gustafa had a smile on, but didn't sound all too sure of himself.

"Why are you waiting so long then? Go for it, already!" Flora egged him on, looking off at Nami who was standing off in the distance but easily recognizable by her flaming red hair. She looked slightly lonely sitting by herself in the sand, looking hopefully up at the sky.

"There's not much time left. It's now or never." Griffin told Gustafa. The hippie took in a deep breath and smiled more broadly than ever.

"Okay, here goes nothing." They all watched expectantly as Gustafa walked over slowly and got Nami's attention. She looked slightly taken aback as he spoke to her. After he'd stopped talking she paused to consider for a few moments.

"Oh… oh… is she gonna say yes?" Marlin craned his neck to get a better look. Nami's face broke into a tiny grin and she nodded her head visibly, her vibrant hair fluttering. She stood up and walked off with Gustafa.

"Whoo! She accepted!" Marlin pumped his arm. "Lucky break for Gustafa…"

"Oh, it's gonna start soon…" Cody noticed, "It's been fun… I'm gonna go find a seat…" He waved at them as he watched off.

"I guess I better go meet Celia… and my sister…" Marlin finished with slight distaste. They all laughed and waved him off as he stumped off, looking slightly disappointed.

"Shall we?" Carter asked Flora cordially. She nodded, her glasses reflecting the now prominent stars. The sky had quikcly turned an inky blue while they were talking.

"Let's hurry!" They both said a short goodbye to Griffin and walked off quickly. Griffin stood alone on the crowded beach, watching all the people go by. He tried to see if he could find Muffy, Haru or Akira's face in the crowd, but had little luck. Everywhere people were finding their parties and sitting down. Gazing out at the sea, Griffin knew Kassey and Patrick were getting ready on one of the inner islands close to the beach. They always provided the fireworks and year after year they always outdid themselves. Griffin always looked forward to seeing what they had in store. Before his eyes couples seemed to be meeting in the low sparkling sands. Karen had found her friend Rick in all the confusion and they now sat shoulder to shoulder, chatting softly. To his surprise, Griffin spotted Rock and Lumina sitting together on a mat. Rock had his arm around Lumina, who looked delightedly flustered. He was laughing and talking loudly to her.

Griffin began to feel a little lonely standing by himself watching the couples happily sitting together. He knew he was too old to do as they did, but he couldn't help but feel a bit sad.

As he watched them all settling down, a face in the crowd gave him a horrid shock. He saw a woman who looked all too familiar turn in and out of the crowd.

_Valentine!? Was that her?_

Heart beating furiously, Griffin nervously scanned the faces in the sea of moving people. _Could it have actually been her?  
_  
_I've gotta leave… what if she spots me…?_

Griffin, keeping his head down turned on the spot and moved forward quickly. He began to walk quickly back through the sand. Only one person's voice managed to stop him.

"Griffin?"

_Haru…_ He turned and saw her a ways off, looking at him bewilderedly.

"Haru." He responded. She took a few careful steps towards him.

"Are you leaving? Don't you want to see the fireworks?" She had a very crestfallen look on her face. Though he didn't know why she would look that way, he stood by her. He hesitated, not speaking. He looked back up at the crowd and quickly found a woman with long black hair and fair features. He sighed.

_It's not her…_

He relaxed and looked back down at Haru with a warm smile.

"No, I wasn't leaving. Just looking for a better place to stand." He lied smoothly. She seemed pleased.

"Oh, that's good."

"Where's Muffy and Akira?" He asked her, "Did they find a good place?" Haru giggled shyly and pointed across the shore. Near the shore Muffy and Akira stood very close to each other with dewy expressions on both their faces as they spoke pointedly to one another.

"They started getting all lovey-dovey. I felt like I should give them their privacy." She shrugged.

"That's good of you…" He told her honestly. She took in a deep breath and looked as if she was going to say something, but stopped and exhaled. Griffin looked at her while she looked out at the crowd. She was silent for a long time and Griffin was sure she was probably thinking of some way to ditch him.

"Griffin, will you watch with me?" Haru said abruptly. Griffin turned to her, completely surprised.

"You wanna watch with me?" He paused for a minute. "Are you sure there isn't someone better? I think there's still some time, if-" Suddenly there was a resonating bang and a collections of "oohs" and "aahs" from the crowd. A golden explosion came to life in the sky, grew brighter and slowly died above their heads. Haru was looking at Griffin expectantly. He could barely believe it, but let some of the happiness show on his face.

"I'd… I'd like that…" He spoke very softly, but she heard him fine, her face breaking into a smile.

"Yay! Let's hurry, its already started!" She grabbed Griffin's wrist and tugged him along, her ponytails bobbing as she went. She stopped at an undisturbed piece of sand and they both sat down together as a glittering blue orb bloomed and broke apart into a thousand shimmering points of light.

"Kassey and Patrick made them all, huh?" She asked, watching a white blaze of light speed through the sky like a brilliant shooting star.

"Yeah… they gotta be the best in the world…" Griffin told her. He watched beside her as the brilliant flittering star spots spun and danced, reflecting prettily in the ocean below. After a few more peaceful moments, Haru spoke again.

"I'm really glad I came to this place. It's almost like… I've fallen into a dream, or something…" Her voice was full of life. Griffin looked at her, his heart aching with a sort of beautiful, strong sadness. He couldn't do anything but stare at her pale face, which picked up the soft glow of the colored fireworks she was watching. Her eyes sparkled like jewels, mirroring the dazzling, colorful explosions.

She looked over at Griffin and noted his stare. She simpered a bit, and turned back towards the twinkling display.

"That sounds kinda funny, I know. I have a tendency to say weird stuff like that…"

"No, It sounds… really nice… I know what you mean." He reassured her honestly, a loud boom roaring in the sky beyond as a flash of light broke out. Haru was beaming as she watched. Griffin felt the most terrible longing as he sat beside Haru in the effervescent darkness. If only she could be his… If only Skye would fade from her life for all time…

_If only moments could last an eternity…_


	11. Ivory in Autumn

Chapter 11

**Ivory in Autumn**

Only weeks after the summer evening on the sands with Haru, the world bloomed into an explosion of golden color. The hot weather dissolved away and summer went forth into autumn. After only a few days, the trees donned their annual shades red and burnt orange which peppered the valley's view. Deep purple berries hung fat and heavy on bushes and the sky seemed to become very wide. Small blusters of wind swept by outdoors, picking up the leaves in a swirling dance of browns and yellow colored leaves. Tiny blue flowers dotted the sides of roads and adorned the front of people's houses and the cool air seemed to refresh everyone in the valley.

On Haru's farm, the corn and tomatoes were cut down to make way for eggplants, sweet potatoes and carrots. Haru could be seen working much harder and happier in the cool autumn breezes. Her cows and horses starting getting chubbier by the day as they prepared for the winter than was to come.

Muffy had been noticeably happier since the day of the fireworks. She hummed and flittered about wherever she went and was generally very chatty. For the past two Wednesdays Haru and she had gone jaunting off to Mineral Town to visit with Akira. She often sighed dreamily through the nights and broke more than one dish while she was lost in thought. Griffin didn't blame her though… love could be demanding on a person…

One evening Muffy sat with her head resting on the bar. She'd spent the day alone inside the bar. Griffin had gone out early in the morning and he hadn't told her where he was headed. The bar had been open for more than an hour, but Griffin had yet to arrive. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath… not one customer had come in.

Suddenly the door flew open and a gust of strong wind whipped around the bar, bringing fragments of dried leaves and a cold chill with it.  
Griffin stumbled in, shivering slightly and fought the door closed with some difficulty.

"There you are!" Muffy said with mild exasperation. "Where were you?" Griffin laughed sheepishly and joined her behind the bar.

"Sorry, I lost track of the time…" He told her shortly. Muffy stared him down.

"… doing what?" She pushed. Muffy wasn't going to let him off with only that. Griffin shrugged, trying to make her loose interest. He didn't really want to say…

"Just visiting with friends…" He hoped that simple explanation would be enough, but somehow knew it wouldn't satisfy her.

"Who?" She had a bit of a smile on her face. Griffin averted his eyes.

"Does it matter who…?" He asked slowly, busying himself with wiping down the bar with a dishrag.

"It was Haru, wasn't it?" Muffy bobbed a little on her ankles, trying to catch Griffin's gaze. He looked away from her to try and hide the spots of pink that had appeared on his cheeks.

"I might've spent a little time with her today..." He conceded.

"Ha! I knew it!" Muffy chimed victoriously, "You're always running off to go see Haru, nowadays… Is there something you're not telling me…?"

"What? What are you talking about?" Griffin was getting quite embarrassed. He's thought he'd been extremely subtle about everything… just so no one would find out.

_Yes, we've been spending time together a lot… but it's just been as friends… nothing more than that! That doesn't seem suspicious at all… how could she jump to conclusions like that…_

"Ooh! I think I'm onto something here…" Muffy was suddenly a glow.

"You're crazy… I don't know what you're talking about, even." Griffin couldn't think of what to say to make her stop.

"… could Griffin have a crush on Haru?" Her voice was singsong as she stepped closer and poked Griffin.

"Hey! That's ridiculous! Don't say strange things like that, people might get the wrong idea!" His face had become very red and he was chewing his fingernail.

"Ohh my gosh! I don't believe it! That's so cute!" Muffy was giggling.

"Muffy! Get it straight I do not have… a crush… on Haru!" He was starting to feel a little bit panicked. He stared down at her while she smiled skeptically, her arms crossed. Suddenly, her attention went towards the door and she waved.

"Oh, hi Haru, how long have you been here?"

Griffin froze, feeling mortified. He spun on heel, trying to think of an excuse to make up for what she could have possibly heard… and…. No one was there….

Muffy laughed uproariously.

"Hahaa.. Oh man… your face… was priceless! Haha!" She covered her mouth as she chortled uncontrollably. Griffin felt even more humiliated, but certainly relieved that Haru hadn't actually been there.

"I'm gonna kill you…" He shook Muffy by the shoulder as she gasped for air. She exhaled contentedly after a few moments and spoke up again.

"Don't worry, your secret's safe with me." She patted him on the back as he turned from her, his arms crossed.

"There's no secret to keep… You just have a severely overactive imagination…"

She smiled knowingly to herself and let the silence do its work.

"Hey…" He said softly, still facing away from her. She made a noise that told him she was paying attention. "You really will keep it a secret, right…?"

He turned back to her with a cautious, vulnerable gaze. She looked back at him with understanding and a hint of joy.  
"Of course."

--

Several days later Griffin stood outside his bar, enjoying the cool autumn breezes. It wasn't time to open for a few more hours and he had nothing to do really. Ever since Muffy had forcefully extracted the truth from him, he was hesitant about going and visiting with Haru. He smiled as he remembered the recent day they had spent together. He really had enjoyed sitting beside her while she fished in the river, talking about this and that and things that didn't really matter. When he was with her, it was almost like all the problems that were bothering him seemed to fade into the background.

He leaned nonchalantly against the side of his bar, looking at the cobwebs that had gathered around the boxes outside the Blue Bar over the years spun and danced in the wind.

Suddenly out of the sleepy afternoon, Rock came bursting out of the inn holding a rectangular flat box with a ribbon tied around it. He marched up past the bar, not even stopping to look at Griffin or anyone else. He had a look of utmost concentration on his face as he walked down the street past the Blue Bar and the well. Ruby came out behind Rock.

"What in the world has gotten into you!? Come back here!" Ruby ran out, leaving the inn doors wide open. A few seconds later Nami poked her head out after Ruby to watch what was happening. But it was too late, Rock was already well on his way to wherever he was headed.  
Ruby stood fuming, holding a whisk that was dripping with some sort of batter.

"Lazy, no-good, ungrateful boy." She breathed in Rock's direction. Suddenly she came out of her annoyance and spotted Griffin watching her from afar. He waved at her cordially. Ruby's expression turned to one of comic shame.

"Sorry you had to see that, Griffin. I just can't control that boy…"

"No worries, Ruby." Griffin waved it off. Nami was still watching from the doorway of the inn with mild interest.

"What are you doing out here by yourself?" She stepped closer and kindly asked. Griffin shrugged.

"Bein' bored. Wastin' time." He offered up.

"Well, if you're not busy, I'm making lunch for Nami right now. You can come and have some if you want."

"Oh, I don't know… I couldn't trouble you…"

"Nonsense, look at you!" She grabbed his arm and held it up. "Just skin and bones. You should eat more…" She advised him forcefully. He scratched his head, avoiding her stern gaze.

"I can make drinks, but I can't cook…"

"Can't cook? You beat me at the cooking festival, remember?" Ruby continued on. Nami drifted out from the Inn and went to stand by Ruby, listening to the conversation. And like a moth to the flame, Muffy sensed there was social gathering forming. She came out of the bar curiously, looking to see what was going on outdoors.

"Hey everyone, what's up?" Muffy asked under Ruby's strain of words.

"I don't really know." Nami spoke lowly, watching intently.

"Look how skinny you are…" She tutted. "You should let me cook for you more often! Or better yet, why don't you get married to a nice little wife who can cook for you everyday!" She playfully scolded him, waving around her batter covered whisk.

"Ha. Very funny… and I'm a little past my pull date for marriage, don't you think?"

"Nooo…" Ruby rejected the thought, "I'm sure there's plenty of women who's be fine with someone your age, you should let that worry you…"

"Yeah, Griffin, isn't there someone you have your eye on…?" Muffy had a bit of a smug look on her face. He gave her a venomous glare and she smiled back unblinking.

"No, there isn't, Muffy." He replied dangerously, staring daggers at her. He was afraid this would come up again.

"What's all the racket? I can hear you guys from my farm!" Called a voice from down the lane. Haru came trotting down the slope that lead up to her ranch.

"Oh, imagine seeing Haru at a moment like that." Muffy said under her breath so that only Griffin could hear.

"You are in trouble…." He returned her remark dryly. She simply giggled. Haru joined the group as Griffin prayed that this whole thing would blow over quickly. Ruby turned primly towards Haru and began to explain.

"Oh, we were just-"

"MOOOM!" Came an almighty shout from down the lane. Rock came charging down the hill, dragging a very flustered looking Lumina by the hand.

"Oh, now what…?" Ruby said with exhaustion. As Rock drew closer, they were able to see a look of pure joy on his face. He was laughing and shouting as he bounded up to them, Lumina getting shook around behind him like a doll.

"Rock, slow down!" She was out of breath, but also looked very happy.

"Rock, you moron. Poor Lumina's going to get hurt!" Ruby scolded him as he came to a screeching halt in front of them. In Lumina's other hand was something soft and radiantly blue. Griffin craned his neck a little to try and see what it is.

"Mom, you'll never guess what!" Rock was panting. Lumina dusted her dress off and regained her feminine posture. She had a proud look on her face now as if she was waiting for some great praise. Muffy studied them with an energetic stare.

"You're right, I probably won't. What is it?" Ruby pressed on, looking a little concerned. Griffin could tell that she'd probably seen many an episode similar to this one throughout Rock's life. Rock puffed up his chest and cleared his throat.

"Mom, Lumina and I… have decided to get married." He paused for the reaction, his blonde hair shading his gold flecked eyes. Everyone gasped in unison. Ruby stood dumbfounded her mouth hanging open.

"Oh my gosh!" Muffy exclaimed, launching forward and giving Lumina a hug. Haru clapped her hands and jumped up and down.

"Congratulations!" Nami looked extremely confused.

"Congrats, you two." Griffin told them as the new couple posed with pride.

"How did this happen?" Ruby was just short of gasping for air. Rock's grin faded a little.

"Mom, how can you be so mean?" He asked her. "You should be happy!" She laughed incredulously and turned towards Lumina who was chuckling softly behind her hand.

"Honey, do you know what you're getting yourself into with him?" Ruby was still in shock. Lumina nodded good naturedly.

"I fully understand…" Her eyes were shining with happiness as she spoke.

"Oh, sweetie…" Ruby pulled both Rock and Lumina into a tight hug. Tears came slowly from her eyes. "I never thought I'd ever see this day…" Rock glowered as he heard this.

"When's the wedding?" Haru asked Rock as he was being strangled by his sobbing mother.

"We thought in about three or four days would be good." Rock told Haru with some straining. At this Ruby released him suddenly and a look of heavy anxiety came over her face.

"Three days!? There's no time at all! We need to get planning right away!"

And it was in these next three days that the valley burst into a flurry of activity. The very afternoon the engagement had been announced, the village women, including Muffy, had wanted to whisk off to the small city beyond Mineral Town to look for Lumina's wedding dress.

"Oh… Griffin can I please take the day off…?" Muffy had begged Griffin. She had been away from the city for so long, it would be a bit cruel to keep her from going. He had tended that bar alone for more than twelve years anyway, it was nothing he couldn't handle.

The day after shipments of flowers and decorations arrived with several people from Mineral Town. Lumina's best friend, who's name was Mary, had come in the morning after the news had been announced. She was a shy and demure librarian in Mineral Town, but nonetheless got busy helping with plans for the wedding. Griffin could see Ruby running back and forth between the mansion and her inn several times a day. She was busy putting together a menu for the after party and had to keep checking in with Romana, Lumina's grandmother, that the dishes she planned were to the old woman's liking. Lumina and Rock had decided to get married in the Mansion's spacious and lush front garden. Lumina's butler, who went by the name of Sebastian was outdoing himself with preparing for the garden wedding. He'd already planted rows and rows of brightly colored flowers which all coincided with the wedding's color scheme. He'd trimmed and pruned the leaves of all the trees and obsessively removed all the dead leaves that fell in the garden several times a day.

"Isn't it exciting…" Muffy peered out of the window as white fabrics and tables were being carried up the hill towards the mansion. "I wish I could have a beautiful wedding like that one day…"

Griffin wasn't excited about the wedding until Sebastian and Lumina came in and ordered a large amount of spirits for the after party. He gladly handed them bottle after bottle, feeling a little of the financial worry drift away. After they'd left Griffin had been left with more than enough money to restock and have some extra left over.

"Muffy, I have good news for you…" He told her the evening before the wedding after the bar had been closed. She looked up tiredly from where she was sitting. He walked over and placed a large handful of coins in front of her. Her eyes lit up and she stared rapturously up at him.

"Your paycheck is back." He cheerfully elaborated. She let out a small squeal and pocketed the money gratefully.

"Yay! Does this mean we're gonna make it? The bar's gonna be okay?" Griffin nodded a little slowly.

"If business keeps up until next spring, we're gonna be just fine. Thanks for sticking with me, Muffy." He patted her on the back and went to sit down on his bed.

"We'd better get some sleep… The wedding starts at a little after noon and it's already well past midnight…"

"Right… Well, I'll get ready to feel depressed…" Muffy sighed audibly, "I still can't believe Lumina's getting married before me…" Griffin laughed at her jealousy.

"Don't you worry about marriage none…" He lay back, feeling extremely sleep, "My guess is Akira is getting mighty comfortable with the notion of you two being together for the long haul." He said sleepily. Muffy got up from the chair, a look of restrained happiness on her face.

"You really think so? Does it seem like it to you?" She asked, atwitter. Griffin felt too tired to answer, so he pretended to be asleep.

She scoffed at him and stood over him with her hands on hr hips.

"Jeez, for only thirty-nine you sure act like an old man…" She taunted.

"And for twenty-eight you sure sound like an old maid." Griffin retorted, smiling but still keeping his eyes closed.

--

"It's really turned out nice…." Muffy said to Griffin. It was an undeniably true statement. Griffin guessed that they must have spent over fifty thousand on the preparation alone. The trees, which were already bursting with beautiful autumn hues, were adorned with all sorts of fancy white decorations. Brilliant flower bouquets were all around the wide courtyard, while white water lilies floated in the splashing fountain. People that Griffin had never seen before in his life were all milling around, speaking with loud joyful voices. The doors to the mansion were welcomingly open and people went in and out, spending time before the ceremony was to begin. Lines of chairs were set up before a finely crafted arch that was adorned with white roses, orange and red orchids, and radiantly yellow marigolds.

Muffy was dressed in a little pink dress with a white cardigan to guard against the slight chill in the fluttering breeze. The golden sun hung in the sky, illuminating the gold and red leaves and making the trees look like huge multicolored light bulbs.

Muffy had forced Griffin into wearing something besides his usual casual attire and he felt awkward and out of place. He saw a slightly sour-faced Nami walk by in a nice pair of pants and a collared shirt and decided he wasn't the only one who felt uncomfortable.

"Heyy, Griffin." A mellow voice from behind Griffin spoke. He turned and a slight shock met his eyes.

"Oh jeez, Gustafa…" Griffin laughed, seeing his friend well groomed and out of Hippie clothes for the first time, "You are the only person I know who'd wear those ridiculous sunglasses to a wedding." Griffin said, noticing his ever present eye wear. Gustafa laughed back and they began to chat a bit to pass the time. Eventually Muffy grew bored of their clearly unfeminine talk and drifted off in search of female company.

Eventually Gustafa left Griffin standing alone in the midst of the sea of people that were crowding into the garden. Griffin watched the heads of the people moving by. He watched curiously as a woman with wide, severe eyes and a load of bushy, sandy blonde hair went into the mansion, looking on edge. She emerged several minutes later holding a lot of food, weaved her way through the crowd and crept into the garden shed. Though thoroughly confused at this, Griffin felt it better not to bring it up to anyone. Bored with waiting, Griffin wandered into the mansion to see who was around there. The wide foyer was significantly quieter and less frantic than the garden. This put Griffin to a ease as he strolled around aimlessly, meandering between groups of people and admiring the richly decorated house. In the corner of the room stood a magnificent piano that must've been Lumina's instrument.

Griffin moved towards it without much conviction and lightly pressed one of the smooth ivory keys. Light from the elaborate glass windows poured in and covered the piano in a misty sort of haze, the swirls of dust twirling like benign stars. Griffin was focused on the keyboard's white and black keys until he saw a white hand move in beside his. It gently pressed the key beside his, then laid itself on top of Griffin's own hand. A golden bracelet hung along the tiny wrist. Griffin's back grew ridged as he followed the hand up to an arm, then a shoulder… then the face.

"Griffin…" Came an eerily familiar voice. It was the same as he remembered it from all those years ago. Griffin found he couldn't breath.

Her hair was long and smooth and shone with a healthy sheen in the light from the window. Though her face was lined with more age than he remembered, she was still breathtakingly beautiful. Her lips had the same shade of deep red she had always used and ruby earrings bounced on silver chains below her ears. Her emerald eyes pierced Griffin's heart in a wave of pain. He caught his breath but when he spoke his voice was weak and pinched.

"Valentine…"


	12. The Storm

Chapter 12

**The Storm**

"I almost didn't recognize you…" Valentine said coolly, her voice low and dangerous. Griffin swallowed with difficulty. This couldn't be happening. It had to be some sort of nightmare. He could only glower down on their touching hands, frozen with fright and sadness. She looked over at him, trying to catch his eye.

"What… you have nothing to say to me…?" Her voice was a little more harsh. Griffin forced himself to breathe properly and after a few moments regained the ability to speak.

"…Why are you here…?" His voice was notably more harsh. After the initial shock, he began to feel very angry. Valentine pouted at him and removed her hand from his. She was glamorously dressed, as usual.

"You underestimate my fame, Griffin… and that's no way to greet an old friend, is it?" She spoke low, her bell like voice only audible to Griffin. He finally screwed up his courage and managed to look her in the eye. It was a mistake… they pierced him and drained him of his energy as they had down so deftly all those years before.

"It's been thirteen years!" Her voice grew stronger and a little more harried.

"Let's make it thirteen more, then. We can go for a record." Griffin turned away from her and tried to walk away. She caught his wrist and squeezed it painfully, whipping him back around. He was sure they were going to attract attention and tried his best not to look at the people around them.

"Hey! Don't you even want to talk to me!?" Valentine's voice was severe and unladylike now, but still soft enough not to be overheard. Griffin guessed she also wanted to keep this private.

"Not particularly, no… and hey, shouldn't you be a little more surprised that…hmm.. Let me think… I'm not as dead as you may have thought?"

Lightening seemed to passed over Valentine's eyes and for a brief moment a very ugly and frightened looked overcame her face, but she quickly recovered and regained her prim composure.

"I have to admit I am quite surprised. But I'm happy… I mean… how could someone survive…" She stopped of short, looking a bit uneasy. She cleared her throat a bit, her sleek black hair falling around her shoulders. Griffin looked pure daggers in her direction.

"So now what, you just crash people's weddings in your free time…?" Griffin spat at her. "Or you just felt like coming back to see if you could mess up my life a little bit more for the hell of it…?"

Valentine shook her head soberly.

"I was invited to this party." She told him haughtily. Her face had become pinched and gained a slightly malicious look over the long years. Her eyes had also endowed a considerable amount of sadness. "You forget, I am a famous singer… I mean, you did meet me before all that, but you of all peole should know…"

Griffin felt his rage boil over and consume him. He gave her a spiteful laugh.

"You're just as vain as ever, Valentine. Though you look old on the outside, you're even more childish than the last time we met."

Her green eyes blazed full of fire.

"Listen, you! I am-" Valentine stopped, her eyes glowing with venom and looked to the area behind Griffin. "Can I help you?" She said as if she were talking to a small insect. Griffin turned, and felt his heart become soaked in ice water. Haru was standing behind him, watching the scene with a concerned and hurt face. Her hair was down and hung in deep auburn waves above her shoulders. She wore a petite but modest dress and a small green necklace. Her eyes moved from Griffin to Valentine, trying to understand what was happening.

"Griffin…?" She braved in a small voice, looking small and vulnerable, "Are you okay…?" Griffin stepped closer to Haru. He felt the overwhelming her to pull her close and tell her it was all fine and she had nothing to worry over, but he just stood fast and sighed. He managed a smile for her and restrainedly put a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm fine…" He spoke to her gently, but she still shot a worried glance over at Valentine who was watching them with frantic interest. A malicious smile broke out on Valentine's lips as she watched them both.

"I best be going now…" She stepped seductively over towards Griffin and rudely pushed Haru out of the way. She stroked the side of Griffin's face gently and batted her eyelashes at him, "I can see I'm not welcome here… but I'll come by for a visit soon, m'kay?" She walked out of the door, swinging her hips as she went. Griffin was so mad he couldn't see straight.

"Wasn't that… that singer from that band that was really popular old band… Marine Jazz or something?" Haru asked slowly. The voice she spoke with was enough to make any man's heart melt with sorrow. She looked thoroughly crestfallen and stared out with unseeing eyes at the crowd. Griffin nodded morosely.

"Yes, it was." His voice was stony. He felt as if he'd just taken a bullet in his heart. The combination of seeing Valentine again and watching Haru in her state was too much. Haru looked over at him.

"You know her…?" She continued on. Griffin sighed again.

"I knew her many years ago… When I was much younger." He told her. _And much more stupid_.

"What happened between you two?" Haru had obviously plucked up a lot of courage to ask the question. Griffin felt his heart experience another wave of pain_. I promised myself I wouldn't think about it…_

"I don't really want to talk about it…" He told Haru looking over at the crowd. They seemed to be taking their seats for the ceremony. Griffin and Haru walked side by side in awkward silence until Haru spoke up again.

"… Is it like a secret…?" Her voice was still small, but a little more light hearted. Griffin laughed, feeling a bit more at ease.

"I guess so…" He shrugged and sat down beside Haru. Ahead of them they saw Muffy sitting between Celia and Flora. She immediately turned back when she caught sight of Griffin sitting with Haru and raised her eyebrows at them, obviously trying to catch their attention. She nodded suggestively at Griffin, who subtly drew his finger across his throat to let her know what he felt about that. She gave him a triumphant sort of look, then turned around immersing herself in frantic conversation with Celia.

"I have a secret, too." Haru whispered to Griffin, who looked back down at her a bit confused.

"What sort of secret?" He asked softly. People were beginning to quiet down. Haru looked at Griffin with seriousness.

"One of the utmost importance. I'll tell you my secret if you tell me yours." She offered a hand to him, but he was hesitant to shake it.

"I don't tell my secrets, though." He told her, half joking and half serious. Haru gave him a dire look.

"This is a really good secret though, you're not even going to believe it! You'd be crazy to turn it down." Haru informed him with a quiet whisper.

"What, are you Phantom Skye's secret lover or something?" Griffin guessed, feeling a little fearful of the answer. Haru grimaced and her face became pink.

"No! And no guessing, you can only offer a trade! Last chance!" Griffin couldn't deny that he was very curious. He thought it over for a moment. She had already met Valentine and knew who she was… Near the flowered arch, Rock came out of the mansion and took his place. All the people in the audience clapped as Rock beamed out at them.

"Ok, fine. But I won't tell you here… and don't rush me about it, I'll let you know if good time, okay?" Griffin bargained with her. Haru looked as if she was weighing the options. She finally shrugged and offered up her hand. Griffin shook it, feeling like he'd never truly be able to tell anyone, even though he'd agreed.

"Ok, your secret better be really good…" Griffin said to her gruffly. There was another round of booming applause as Lumina appeared at the end of the aisle. Her dress was magnificent. The sheer material was lined with pure white fur and bright yellow flowers adorned Lumina's honey colored hair. She was shining with delight as Sebastian walked her proudly down the aisle. She stepped up to Rock and Mayor Thomas began reading the wedding vows out for everyone to hear.

"Do you Rock… swear to love Lumina forever… in sickness and in health…"

"It is really good. But you can't tell anyone, agreed?" Haru whispered while Thomas droned on slowly. Rock and Lumina couldn't take their eyes off one another.

"Agreed."

Griffin felt Haru's tiny pinky finger hook around his own and give a small shake.

"All right, you promised…" She took a small breath, but paused to watch Rock say his 'I do.' While holding Lumina's pale, soft hands in his own. A cheer streamed through the audience. Ruby was sobbing loudly with Romana, each of them grasping one another while watching the ceremony.

"Ok… You may not believe it… but the Harvest Goddess herself has been turned to stone and all of the Harvest Spites banished to another world. They have appointed me the task of single-handedly rescuing each and everyone of them." Haru voice was extremely serious. Griffin stared at her incredulously, a limp smile on his face. She raised her eyebrows for effect after she finished. Griffin shook his head, his ponytail moving from side to side.

"You can't possibly expect me to believe that?" His voice was full of humor.

"It's true! I swear it's all true!" Haru protested, looking indignant. Griffin wondered if there might be something wrong with Haru's head.

"I do!" Lumina cried out joyously across the courtyard. Everyone cheered out joyously as Rock swept Lumina down and kissed her with passion in front of all the people.

"Rock, be respectful!" Ruby's voice shrieked out. When the two of them broke apart, Lumina was alight with happiness. Rock pulled her off her feet lightly and carried her into the mansion, a train of people following behind slowly, all alive with conversation.

"You honestly want to believe that not only is the Harvest Goddess real, but you are going to rescue her…?"

Haru nodded at Griffin, a smile playing on her lips.

"You! You can't expect me to hold up that bargain after you tell me something weird like that!" Griffin stood up along with everyone else, taunting Haru.

"What!? Don't try to slither out, you promised me!" Haru whined beside him as they left.

"No way!"

"Heeyyy! Griffin, no fair!"

The party wore on long into the night. Over the course of the evening, Valentine's sudden appearance had drifted from Griffin's mind, but made a painful return in the night. Though he felt exhausted from all the day's happenings, he found it very difficult to sleep that night. He couldn't stop images from his past from flooding over his eyes as he tried to sleep.

"Why can't you just stay gone…" Griffin spoke aloud to no one. The night was dark and dismal. A quick flash of light lit up Griffin's empty gray room, followed by the rumble of distant thunder.

_Why was she so calm about seeing me… That doesn't make any sense…_ Griffin ran it over in his mind again. Knowing the kind of person Valentine was, he somehow felt that this was more than a coincidence and that something distant and dangerous had yet to rear it's ugly head.

_What are you planning, Valentine…?_

--

The day after the wedding was cloudy and gray. Lightening could be seen dancing amongst the thick cloud layer like almighty fires from heaven and frequent booms of thunder rang out across the valley. The wind kicked up to a vicious speed and ripped the cheerfully colored leaves from the trees. That Wednesday, Muffy sat disappointedly at the window side all day long and into the night, reading a book. She only got up to take a long bath in the evening.

"It looks like there's gonna be a bad storm…" She told Griffin woefully as she came out of the bathroom, a plume of steam following behind her. "It's too bad we couldn't make it to Mineral town today…" Griffin nodded his head at her, reclining in the chair while trying to figure the balance of their expenses in his head. He had been scribbling notes over a scrap of paper all day trying to sort everything out.

"Too bad… we needed to restock…" He told Muffy who was preoccupied with watching the dark, cloudy sky.

"I didn't even get to visit the inn today…" She spoke to herself, "I'll bet Ruby is lonely ever since her son moved out."

"Yeah..." Griffin said absentmindedly tried to concentrate on his numbers.

"I'm bored when the weather is bad…I wish Haru was here to chat with…" Muffy said, dreamily as a violent gust of window swept across the valley, rattling the window panes. "You'd like that, huh?" Muffy added slyly. Griffin put his pencil down on the table.

"Muffy… I thought you said you were gonna keep quiet about that." He said exasperatedly. "I'm really serious, I don't want anyone to know. I didn't even want you to know!" Muffy turned back towards him.

"I don't see what the big deal is." She crossed her arms in front of her chest, "Why don't you just go for it?" Griffin looked out at her with a defenses sort of light in his eyes. _She just doesn't understand..._

"Look, I'm not the kind of guy that can just 'go for it'… I've already accepted the fact I'm going to be alone for the rest of my life… so it's fine." Griffin tried to explain to her. Muffy wouldn't take that for an answer.

"Don't be silly! You're always discrediting yourself for no good reason! So what, you're a bit older than her… does that really matter?" She came and sat beside him.

"Yes! It really does! I'm just a washed up bartender with no future… I could never be good enough for her, okay? Just let me alone and let it die away with time." He sounded pathetically miserable. Muffy sighed and shook her head.

"There's no reasoning with you… Well, I'll keep quiet if you want… but trust me, girls like Haru don't just show up everyday."

He was well aware of this fact. Outside there came an enormous crash of thunder coupled with a white blinking that was nearby lightening. The sound of heavy rain began to beat down hard on the room of the bar. Muffy strolled around the room for a few minutes. She twanged the strings on Griffin's guitar and tried to play a song with it to no avail. After a while she got up and moved over to Griffin's bedside table where his photos stood. She looked at them for a long while, studying them all. She picked up a few frames and brought it over to where Griffin was finishing calculating the finances.

"Is this you?" She put a framed photograph on top of Griffin's scribbles. Sure enough, Griffin saw his own face, years younger, smiling back up at him jauntily. His hair had hung around his chin in a wispy mess back then and his mustache hadn't even fulled out yet. He was holding his white guitar in his lap and sitting on a city bench. Beside him in the picture was a man with heavy brows and dark hair giving the camera a wild look. Standing behind him in the photograph was a shorter man with copious amounts of black and bleached hair wearing dark sunglasses. He was throwing the camera a peace sign and he had a pair of drumsticks in his hand. Beside the man with the drumsticks was Valentine herself, posing glamorously, her hair much shorter and youthful looking. Muffy pointed to the men in the photo.

"I feel like I've met these two before somewhere... at some party or something…" Muffy tapped the glass.

"Joseph and Lewis?" Griffin looked down at their faces. "Nah, I haven't seen those guys in years."

"Who are they anyway?" Muffy walked behind Griffin and looked down at the photo.

"Those guys? They are my old band mates. Joe was the bassist and Lewis was the drummer." He pointed to the heavy-browed man first, then the man with the drumsticks.

"And she's the singer?" Muffy put her finger above Valentine. Griffin nodded. "Wait... I know her face…" Muffy squinted for a minute and Griffin knew what was coming.

"Ahh! That's the lady who's in Marine Jazz! Griffin, you knew her!?" She shouted, looking at him with a new respect. Griffin looked at her with a humble smile.

"Muffy… I was their guitarist."

"NO WAY!" Muffy's mouth hung open, she laughed in disbelief. Griffin turned away with humility, but was smiling. "You've got to be kidding me! You were_ in _Marine Jazz? Why in the heck did you leave, you could've been famous!"

"Remember how Griffin doesn't like to talk about his past?" He reminded her casually, not wanting to get into it. He still couldn't believe that he'd promised Haru that he'd tell her his 'secret'. He had begun to hope powerfully that she'd either forget or admit she made up that story so she could get the truth out of him.

"Oh… come on!" Griffin almost enjoyed watching her squirm about begging him to tell her. "You can't just drop that bomb on me and expect me not to want more! Please Griffin!"

"Muffy, I really don't want to talk about it." He told her, hoping she would understand and let it go.

"Jeez, what was so bad anyway!?"

Griffin pushed memories away as the rain beat down hard on the bar. He looked up at Muffy, who deflated when she saw his look. His eyes were full of pain.

"…Sorry…" She apologized and sat back down quietly. She was silent for a moment while Griffin peered at his younger self. Muffy looked very downtrodden. Griffin sighed at her face.

"Muffy, it's not that I don't trust you or anything…" He started to say. The deep amber lamplight illuminated the room with misty sepia as he thought of how to explain it. However, before he could start a great pounding came from the front door. Muffy and Griffin sat very still, looking at one another. The pounding resonated again, mixing ominously with the sound of the pouring rain.

"Who could be around at this time of night…?" Muffy spoke slowly, looking more than a little scared. Griffin stood up with authority.  
"You stay here. It could… It could be that guy…" He didn't want to scare her, but he needed to make sure she stayed put. The distant sound of frantic pounded came again. Muffy's face turned white and she stared up at Griffin with wide eyes.

"Be careful!" Her voice was shrill. Griffin went into the dark bar slowly and cautiously, shutting the door behind him. The silhouettes of heavy rain against the windows shone in dark pale reflections across the floor. Griffin jumped a little as the door shook as the person behind it pounded some more. He undid the latch slowly and cracked open the door. A small figure stood dripping wet and shrouded in shadow.

"Griffin…?" A small and terrified voice came out of the darkness. Griffin swung the door open wider, heart beating frantically. In the misty wet light stood a shivering and pale looking Haru.

"Haru! Jeez, what happened to you?" Griffin exclaimed, cursing himself for not coming sooner. Haru stood outside, letting the rain beat down on her. Her lip quivered as she stared at him, seemingly rooted to the spot. After a few moments, Haru's face screwed up and she launched forward at Griffin, burying her face in his chest. Griffin stumbled, completely taken aback.

"Haru, what's wrong?" He asked her with urgency, keeping his arms shyly away from her body. She was soaked through so bad, Griffin was starting to get damp from her holding onto him. She started crying softly as he shut the door and locked it.

"Come on, Haru. Come in here." He put an arm around her gently and led her into the back room. She was shaking violently and choking back tears. As they went in, Muffy stood up with shock.

"Haru, oh my gosh! Sweetie, what's wrong?" Her voice was extremely worried. She pulled Haru from under Griffin's arm and held her momentarily, sitting her down in the chair. She stroked Haru's arm as Haru took deep breaths and began to calm down some.

"What happened?" Griffin was trying to keep calm.

"Haru! You're bleeding!" Muffy shrieked. There was blood all over Muffy hand. Griffin saw now that blood was flowing down Haru's arm, mixing with the rain water. Her shirt had a rip in and a small gash was visible on further inspection.

"Who did this!?" Griffin demanded angrily, feeling as if the life was draining out of him as he saw her bleeding there. Haru was trying to speak, but it seemed no words would come out.

Muffy scurried into the bathroom to get a towel. She ran back and put it over Haru's cut. Haru took a sharp breath and looked up at Griffin, her hair dripping water all of the table and floor.

"…I-I couldn't see his face…" Haru choked out finally, shaking madly. Muffy stopped and stood up, her face stony. "He w-wore some weird cl-cloak…"

Griffin looked over at Muffy. They both shared looks of deep, all-encompassing horror.

"Haru... tell us what happened..."


	13. Under the Bows

Chapter 13

**Under the Bows**

Haru was unable to speak at first. Minutes after she'd arrived, Muffy had found some bandages and wrapped Haru's arm up tight. In the meantime Haru had calmed down enough to stop her tears from flowing. Outside the rain was as harsh as ever, coming down in a pounding sheet all around the valley. It was as if the sky were battling the earth. Haru was staring at her damp knees while Muffy went to put the bandages away. Griffin grabbed a blanket from his bed then wrapped it securely around Haru's shoulders. She gave him a damp smile and pulled it tight.

"Thanks…" Her voice was weak. Griffin pulled his chair up beside her and sat down, looking her in the eyes with utmost seriousness.

"Can you tell me what happened?" He asked point blank. Haru took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"Well…" She seemed to be thinking as she sat in silence for a few more seconds, "It started earlier today... I saw this guy hanging around outside my farm at different times of the day. He'd always come back every couple hours... It seemed like he was looking around for something…" Haru opened her eyes again. They were full of anxiety and were faintly red from her tears.

"Anyway… When I was letting the animals back inside for the night, he suddenly came up behind me. I remembered him at once as the guy who gave me the letters for Muffy…" Haru looked over at Muffy as she was came back into the room. Muffy frowned and sat on Griffin's bed.

"So it was him…." Muffy said morosely. Haru looked confused and Griffin and Muffy shortly explained what he'd done to Muffy and what the letters had said. This didn't seem to ease Haru's mind. She looked rather ill by the end of the story and was wrapping Griffin's blanket tightly around her body.

"But what did he do tonight?" Muffy reminded Haru of her story.

"Oh, yeah… well he came up to me after I'd put the cows in and then he asked me something like, 'You're Muffy's friend, aren't you?' and 'Who was that guy she was with?' and 'where can I find him?'… stuff like that."

Muffy bit her lip. It was obvious that the cloaked man was referring to Akira. Muffy's hands were clasped together on her lap.

"So, of course, I didn't tell him anything. I just kept telling him to leave me alone and that I had a lot of work to do. So he left…" Haru shrugged, "I was gonna come by and tell you guys about it then, but I was afraid he was still prowling around so I decided to wait until tomorrow. Shortly after that I went in and went to sleep…"

Griffin was also beginning to feel a little sick. He did not like where Haru's tale was going… He looked at her with a straight face, trying to keep his worries and fears below the surface. Haru began to shake a little again… it was obvious that what happened next had been quite nasty.

"Um… so then… about fifteen minutes ago I guess… there was this banging on my door that woke me up." Haru mumbled, biting her thumb nail gently, "And I saw it was him… And I knew I had to wait for him to leave and then come over here… So I got dressed really quick and hid while I waited for him to go away."

Griffin and Muffy were both listening intently, not even daring to breath.

"So…" She coughed a bit, "The banging stopped for a second, so I got up… and then all of a sudden the door just slammed open and he charged in at me!"

Griffin's grasped the chair he was sitting in. He couldn't believe he'd let this happen… maybe if he'd have told her about the cloaked man beforehand…

Haru started getting a little bit teary again, but she held her emotions back as much as she could.

"He just burst in somehow and he grabbed me and pushed me up against the wall!" She wailed, almost seeming ashamed, "Then h-he pulled out a knife and put it up to my throat and started screaming at me, 'Who was that guy she was with, tell me right now or I'll cut you open!'" Haru was shaking violently again. Griffin was flooding with rage.

"That bastard! I'll make him pay!" He growled, wanting nothing more than to get his hands on the man who'd hurt Haru. "It's unforgivable…"

Muffy stood up, looking just as frightened as Haru. She walked over to Haru and put a hand on her shoulder.

"So I said I'd tell him if he'd calm down. He took the knife down and as soon as he did I just ran as fast as I could. Right when I broke away he cut my arm a bit but I didn't stop. As soon as he saw that he'd actually cut me, he ran away too. I don't know why… but I was still scared, so I came here…"

"I'm glad you did… he could still be out there…" Griffin told her. She seemed reasonably calmer now that she had told them what happened to her.

"We've gotta tell the police or something…" Muffy's voice was full of fear, "He would've killed her…"

Griffin's expression was hardened. He was trying to figure out how to handle this situation.

"They wouldn't be able to do anything. We have nothing to go off of… We don't even have his handwriting because you shredded all the letters…" He spoke slowly, more to himself than to anyone else. "Even if we told the police, they couldn't just be waiting around here all the time on the off-chance that he shows up. And even if he did, they have nothing but our word to convict him on…"

It seemed as if it couldn't get much worse. Haru and Muffy both looked paralyzed with fear, but Griffin stood up before them and smiled warmly.

"Don't either of you worry. I'm not going to let anything happen to anyone. You're both safe now, so don't worry about anything tonight. Next time he comes around here, I'll make sure he gets what's coming to him. You have my word that I will protect you at all costs." His voice was brave and confident. They both smiled at him with trust in their eyes. Griffin meant every word.

"Thank you, Griffin." Haru said shyly, "I don't know what I'd do without you…"

Griffin's heart felt very warm after she'd said that. He couldn't help but smile back at her. Haru looked around the room for the first time since she'd been in there.

"Hey, what's this…" She picked up the framed photo on the table. Griffin scowled… he'd forgotten it was there.

"Ahh, it's nothing…" Griffin tried to get it before Haru, but she slid it off of the table and into her hands.

"Ooh, who's this cutie?" She smiled, pointing to Griffin's younger self.

"That's Griffin, silly!" Muffy said to her, sounding a bit more relaxed. Perhaps Griffin's words had truly assured them of their safety.

"What!? It is?" Haru blushed brightly, "But that doesn't look like him, this guy's nose is straight, Griffin's is a bit crooked…" Haru pointed out.

"Ahh, that's enough…" Griffin tried to snatch the picture away.

"Ohh, now that you say it, I notice it too…" Muffy agreed and they both continued to look at the photo.

"See, Haru… this is that band called Marine Jazz… Griffin was their guitarist, can you believe it?"

"Hey! This is that Valentine woman you met at the wedding!" Haru noticed Valentine in the picture.

"Griffin you saw her the other day? Why didn't you tell me, I want to meet her too!"

"Give it…" Griffin tried to get the picture back. He did not like where this was going. Muffy could never understand why he wanted to keep something to himself and he was beginging to get a little fed up with her meddling.

"Ohh, they were fighting, didn't I tell you?" Haru told Muffy with vigor, "They were making a huge scene."

"Whaaat!" Muffy shouted, "You never told me about this, Griffin!" She seemed a bit peeved.

"Nothing happened!" Griffin protested, starting to feel annoyed.

"What is with you and that woman? Why do you always get so defensive?" Muffy pushed on.

"Griffin promised to tell me about what happened between them…" Haru boasted to Muffy. She didn't take this bit of news well at all.

"Griffin! You'll tell Haru but you won't tell me?" There was jealousy in her voice. Griffin was beginning to feel overly flustered.

"No, I'm not telling anyone! Will you just leave me alone, already?" He was extremely tired of people trying to poke into his private business. _Why is it so important to them anyway… what could possibly be that interesting_?

"Hey! You promised!" Haru shouted indignantly.

"Jeez, Griffin… Always so closed off from everyone. Would it kill you to let someone in for once?" Muffy retorted, scandalized. Griffin was letting his emotions spiral out of control. Before he knew it, he was yelling at them.

"Good grief! Just stop! I'm not telling anyone anything, so just stop asking and leave me the hell alone!"

Silence rang for a heavy moment in the bar. The only sound that could be heard was the pouring rain beating thickly on the roof. Haru looked affronted and extremely shocked. Muffy's mouth hung slightly open. It was the first time Griffin had ever raised his voice to either of them. Griffin's body untensed as he realized the gravity of what he'd just said. He began to feel quiet shameful and opened his mouth to apologize and explain.

"Haru… Muffy…"

Haru screwed up her face and stood up with fervor, letting Griffin's blanket fall into the chair she was in before.

"FINE! If that's what you want, then I'll be happy to leave you 'the hell' alone!" There were tears in Haru's eyes. Griffin felt his heart sink. He extended an arm to her and looked humiliated.

"Haru, I'm sorry… I just…"

Haru walked past him, bristling as she went straight for the front door. She stiffly threw open the door and stopped for a moment.

"Haru, it's dangerous!" Muffy shouted, trying to get her to stop before it was too late. Haru shot a fiery glare back at Griffin, then sped out of the door and into the cold, wet night.

"Haru, wait! I didn't mean it!" Griffin shouted at her.

"Oh, great! You just had to go and upset her!" Muffy threw up her hands, "She could be in big trouble. We've got to do something."

"I… didn't mean what I said… I just got angry…" Griffin tried to explain to Muffy, but she just turned away from him coldly. Griffin sighed loudly.

"I'm going to go find her." He said with strength, "I can't have her getting hurt because of what I said…"

_I'm such an idiot…._ Griffin thought, furious with himself as he stared into the torrentially rainy night. Muffy's expression softened somewhat.

"Take an umbrella at least… put on a coat or you might get sick."

"There's no time, I gotta find her now." Griffin told her. He  
stopped for a second and turned back towards Muffy, a look of genuine remorse on his face. "Muffy… I'm really sorry… Do you believe me?"

Muffy nodded morosely.

"It's fine… just bring her back safe or I'll never forgive you." She told him, her voice shivering.

"Keep the door locked and don't open it for anyone." Griffin told her as he left.

The first crash of rain hit Griffin like an icy weight. It was freezing outside of the bar and the night was wild and dark. Wind kicked up the rain and it painfully struck his face and body with a huge force. Over the dark and churning ocean lightening struck and lit up the world in a brief, eerie flash. Thunder snarled back at him and Griffin felt extremely small and powerless. He ran up to the path, panting, his breath visible in the frigid air. The rain splashed onto his hair and caused the long and untamed strands to obstruct his vision.

"Haru!" He called out through the roar of the squall. There was no way she could have heard him. He ran up to the path past the inn as fast as he could, rain relentlessly beating down on him. The walkways were flooded with large puddles and rain had managed to seep into Griffin's boots. He slipped once on the slick concrete and banged his knees hard, but he wasn't about to give up. He made it to her farm in a matter of minutes and searched the dark premises. Haru's front door was still open, but there was no sign of anyone inside. Griffin shut her door and searched her entire farm for what felt like an hour. She was nowhere to be found.

By the time he exited the farm and went back to the walkway, he was shivering madly and completely exhausted.

"I'll find her…" He promised himself and he ran across the bridge that led to Vesta's farm. The river beneath it was an angry and vapid wave of churning dark water filled with broken sticks and debris.

Vesta's farm was ominous and dark in the night, the fields of crops a misty expanse that seemed to travel on forever. Muddy water had filled up the fields and made a sort of dark swamp land. Haru was definitely not there.

Vesta's lights were all off, so it was safe to say she hadn't run to them. Griffin pushed his body even farther. His lungs were stinging with the strenuous exercise and vicious tremors shook his body. Every part of him was numb with cold.

Wiping his wet hair from his eyes yet again, he continued up between the swishing windmills. Their blades beat faster than he'd ever seen them, chopping away like helicopter blades, creating an intimidating swooshing sound that overtook even the darkness. Griffin pushed himself up the hill to the waterfall where Carter and Flora worked. Completely out of breath, Griffin checked inside the damp dig site. A pool of dirty water had accumulated at the bottom of the dig site, but besides this there was nothing interesting or out of the ordinary. The water fall crashed down powerfully, mercilessly roaring and bellowing into the night. It was dangerously swollen with rainwater.

Griffin began to feel frightened for Haru. What if the cloaked man had still been around? What if… he had got to her?

Griffin shook off the unpleasant thoughts with frantic force.

"No! I'm coming to find you… even if it takes me all night!"

He began to agonizing jog back down the hill and past Vesta's farm. Griffin's legs were aching by the time he reached the bridge. It was even hard to breath with all the water in the air. He coughed and sputtered as he crossed over the bridge, feeling as if he might collapse at any moment. He looked over the valley from where he was; the bar's lights were still on. Muffy was probably still waiting up for him. Haru's farm was still dark and empty, as was the rest of the valley. Lightening struck again, followed by the wave of thunder.

"Where are you….?" Griffin said hopelessly. _What if she got hurt? What if that guy found her? All because of me?  
_  
He knew that he could never live with himself if any of these turned out to be true. Griffin was filled with misery and fear as he stood alone, the rain slowly defeating him in the endless gloom of the night.

_I promised to protect you…_

Griffin couldn't remember feeling so worried about someone else. At the moment he would have given anything in the world to know that she was safe… but a disturbing, growing suspicion told him otherwise.

"It's my fault if you got hurt! It's my fault…" He told himself as he was being swallowed by the rain. He looked over towards the path up to the spring.

"There's still a chance…" He reminded himself. He no longer could run up the slope, but he plodded on relentlessly. He knew his body had been pushed to the limit as he shook his way up to the spring. Chest heaving, he felt his eyes sting and grow warm.

"Haru…" He called meekly into the night. His eyes welled up as he thought of Haru in the clutches of the dark hooded stranger. Griffin finally reached the spring and looked out among the plants and flowers that grew there. The large, crystal-like plants were alight with their bio-luminescent glow, lighting everything in a cold, pale sheen. Griffin scanned the area, body shaking uncontrollably. He felt that he was about fall to his knees and die at any moment. It had been hours since Haru had run out. Where was she…?

Griffin looked over towards the large tree at the end of the clearing and his heart nearly stopped. There she was!

At once, all the energy flowed back into Griffin and he rushed over to her with the greatest speed he cloud muster. She lay limp and pale against the side of the tree, her back resting against it. She was somewhat sheltered from the rain under the great bows, but still looked soaked through.

"Haru! Haru!" Griffin yelped, shaking her shoulders. She slowly opened her radiantly purple eyes and caught sight of him. Griffin choked with happiness and felt hot tears slide down his face. He was suddenly extremely glad that it was raining so heavily.

"… Are you looking for Harvest Sprites…?" He whispered to her through the rain, a weak smile on his lips. Haru's lip trembled and she thrust herself forward into Griffin's arms. They sat under the great tree in the pale blue glow, holding each other and crying as the rain poured down on them. Griffin felt that he never wanted to let Haru go. Though she was drenched, she still felt warm and alive in his arms. Though it was by no means comfortable out in the freezing rain and Griffin was on the verge of exhaustion, he felt that it was one of the most beautiful moments of his long life.

"I'm so sorry, Haru…" He whispered in her ear as she leaned into his chest. "I'm such an idiot…" She looked up at him as if nothing in the entire world mattered at all.

"…So you don't want me to leave you alone?" She braved, shivering against his body. Griffin shook his head.

"No… No… forget that… I didn't even… Just forget it…" He gave her a tired smile. "Come on, let me get you home." He let go of her and stood up. Pulling her up from the ground, they both set off back towards the main path. Haru and Griffin were both dripping wet and completely pushed past their limit, but Griffin could not help feeling intensely relieved and happy as he walked beside Haru. He wasn't alone anymore.

"Yes… Yes… we're both fine… Go ahead and sleep, I'll be back soon. Ok… Bye." Griffin hung up the phone and turned around. Haru was still drying off in the bathroom. They had arrived at her farm and both dried off from the rain and rested for a moment. Griffin felt that it would be good to call Muffy and let her know everything was okay as soon as possible.

He knew he should be getting back soon, but he was so tired all he could do was sit on the ground with his back to Haru's bed. His hair was a complete mess and stuck out in all directions and hung about his eyes. He felt like he'd never be able to move again as every inch of him ached.

Suddenly, Haru came out of the bathroom, dressed in her dry pajamas. She giggled at Griffin while she put some things away in her dresser.

"What are you doing on the floor?" She asked him.

"I can't move…" He replied. He was really not looking forward to walking back to the bar in the rain and getting all wet again. Haru smiled at him, but went very still for a moment.

"Griffin... I'm really sorry…" Her voice was low, but had a note of strong will in it. "It's all my fault that you had to come and look for me. I acted like a child… I apologize for my behavior, you must think very little of me." She sat down beside him on the floor, resting against the bed.

"No, I don't think that at all…just next time run off to a place that's easier to find, ok?" Griffin said, his eyes closed. Haru laughed a bit, but said nothing. "… I was being stupid… Muffy's right, I'm too closed off… I just didn't think it meant all that much to you to hear about my…erm.. 'secret'?"

"It doesn't matter anymore… It's none of my business what happened in your past anyway, I'm just being nosy like usual." While she said these words she sounded extremely depressed and disappointed.

_I guess it does mean a lot to her… _Griffin thought as he observed her face. _What's the harm in speaking about it, anyway… If she really wants to know…_

"… _would_ it mean a lot to you to know?" Griffin asked her timidly, looking away. His heart began to beat fast. _Am I actually going to tell her…? Can I do it…?_

Haru perked up a bit.

"Well, I don't want to pressure you…" He could hear how much she wanted to know in her voice. He sighed. Years of pain he'd spent in silence. He'd never told a single soul what had happened to him all those years ago.

_I'd like you to know, Haru._ He thought as he stared into her eyes. _If it's you, I think it would be okay. _He gave her a warm and open smile, but she looked slightly bewildered.

"Okay, Haru… You win. I'll tell you my secret…"


	14. Silence Broken

The song I used is called "My Funny Valentine" and it's by Rodgers and Hart.

Chapter 14

**Silence Broken**

Haru looked back to Griffin with wide, disbelieving eyes.

"You'll… you'll tell me?" She stuttered. Griffin shrugged.

"That is, if you really want to hear… and if you're not too tired… it's kind of a long story." He warned her. She shook her head vigorously for side to side, he ponytails swinging.

"Oh, I'm not too tired! Not at all!" Haru assured him, sitting to face Griffin who was laughing at her reaction.

"Well, ok then. Just warning you, it's no fairy tale. Don't expect it to be all nice and whatnot."

"Oh, no, no!" Haru nodded, attending him respectfully. Griffin sighed and thought back deep into his past.

"Ok… where to start…" He breathed, thinking about what would be a good place to begin. He still couldn't believe he was actually going to tell her after all this time.

"Well, I guess it starts way back when I was just a kid. You remember I lived with my grandfather here in the valley after my parents abandoned me, right?" He reminded Haru who nodded. "Well, I had a lot of time out here doing not too much. My Grandfather would teach me how to tend the bar and all, but I guess I spent a whole lot of my days playing that old guitar. There wasn't much else that could capture my attention, I guess. I used to play that thing all day until my fingers bled… that's how I became so damn good at it." He reminisced, remember his days as a teenager in the bar he still lived in to this day.

"Me and my Grandfather got along fine, too. He treated my just like I was his son instead of grandson, and he always went on about how I would inherit the Blue Bar and keep it up and going after he was dead. It was his dearest dream… him and his father built that bar with their own two hands and my entire family's been tending it since." Griffin explained. He checked Haru's expression. She didn't seem to be bored yet, so he decided to continue.

"Well, anyway, one night when I was about nineteen or so, me and my grandfather got into this huge fight. I didn't want to live out my days in that old bar, and I thought I was good enough to make it on my own as a musician. He told me I didn't have a choice, that it was what I owed him for him raising me and all." Griffin shrugged and thought.

"…He was right too… But I was stupid and young… So I ran off, took some of his money and his guitar and left for the city. Now that I look back on it, it was a terrible thing to do…I'm not proud of it, but what's done is done, I suppose."

Haru nodded somberly. It was good to hear she wasn't passing an judgments, so he felt the confidence to continue. He sighed, trying to remember things clearly.

"So I reached the city to tried to make it big with my old guitar. I spent a year or two wandering about, poor as could be, playing guitar on the street corners and waiting for my dream to find me. It was tough times. But that all changed in the matter of one night… I remember it was snowing…

_Griffin walked into a bar, dusting the fresh powder off his shoulders. The guitar weighed him down as usual._

"What a dump…" Griffin said softly to himself as he shut the door behind him. The lot that were sitting around were greasy old grumps. Some were grumbling in low voices amongst themselves. Other busied themselves with stiff games of poker. The smell of smoke and bourbon was heavy on the air. Griffin took a seat at the bar, careful not to sit to close to anyone else.

"Gimme a shot of rum." He said softly to the old bartender, sliding him some coins. It was pretty much all he had… He might as well spend the snowy night somewhat drunk if he could.

"Hey, it's Valentine!" A voice croaked from behind Griffin. Griffin turned in spite of himself… he was shocked a woman actually had the guts to come into a place like this. In the back of the dirty bar was a dusty old stage. A stunningly beautiful woman with short, glossy black hair stood upon it, looking unsettled. She had brilliant green eyes and wore a spangled, crimson dress. The men hooted and hollered in her direction, but she held fast.

Griffin couldn't help but stare at her. Of all the years of living in the city he had never once seen a woman so beautiful as this. Some music began to whine out of a tired old speaker and the woman called Valentine began to sing a very melancholy, jazzy tune. Griffin was surprised. She looked even younger than he did, yet she sang with such expertise.  


"My funny Valentine  
Sweet comic Valentine  
You make me smile with my heart  
Your looks are laughable  
Unphotographable  
Yet you're my favorite work of art…"__

Her voice was just short of angelic, yet the men in the audience wouldn't stop laughing and tugging at the ends of her dress. However, she held strong and kept on singing beautifully. Her face was nervous and worried, yet her performance was impeccable. Griffin felt his heart clamoring heavily in his chest.  


"Is your figure less than greek?  
Is you mouth a little weak  
When you open it to speak?  
Are you smart?  
But don't change a hair for me  
Not if you care for me  
Stay, little Valentine  
Stay  
Each day is Valentine's day…"__

She finished on the most beautiful note, but no one clapped. They all hooted and holler and yelled out obscene things in her direction while Valentine stepped down quickly and went over to the bartender, looking scandalized.

"Is my shift over yet? I've been singing on and off for hours." She said exasperated to the bartender. He looked at her for a moment, then went back to what he was doing.

"Sure, you're done for tonight, sweet cheeks." He turned away. Valentine opened her mouth with anger. Her lips were rose red.

"Aren't you going to pay me?" She sounded frantic, "You've been promising me for weeks!"

"Tomorrow, honey. Come back tomorrow."

Valentine made a noise of utter frustration and clamored out of the door. Griffin watched her go with a little sadness. He sat at the bar for a few moments and thought.

It's not everyday you hear a girl with that good of a voice…._ He thought to himself. He got up a few seconds later and went out of the door. Valentine was sitting in the snow, tears dripping down her face. Griffin looked over at her with some hesitation._

"Hey, are you-"

"I'm not a prostitute, so you can just forget about it, buster!" She screamed at him. Griffin stumbled and scratched his hair. It fell in a stylish mess around his chin.

"Hey, I didn't say nothing about that!" Griffin told her, "I just wanted to say… I think you have a beautiful voice and I don't know what you're doing singin' in a dump like this." He gestured with his thumb towards the run down bar. Valentine sized him up with a look and sighed violently.

"It's the only place that'll hire me. A singer with no band can't get very far in this place, no matter how good she may be." She explained, "But I might as well head back and go home. This whole thing doesn't seem to be working out." She sounded terribly dejected. Griffin stepped a little closer with caution.

"You need a band?" He asked and she nodded without looking at him. Griffin thought for a moment.

"What kinda name is Valentine, anyway?" He asked in a calm, mild voice. He didn't want to scare her off. She stared forward with tight lips.

"It's just a stage name. My real name is Anya, but everyone knows me as Valentine because my signature song is "My Funny Valentine"… so you should probably just remember it that way." She explained. Griffin looked her over with a worrisome glance.

"Well, I can play the guitar…" He started, removing his old white instrument from his back.

"Yeah, but can you play it WELL?" She asked bluntly, finally looking at him, however skeptically.

"Well, you tell me." Griffin poised himself and played the most skillful solo he could. Valentine's face grew bright and excited as she listened to him play. After he'd finished, she clapped.

"That was great!! What did you say your name was?" She questioned him, finally speaking to him with a note of respect in her voice.

_  
"I didn't say… but it's Griffin." He shook her hand. She put a finger to her lips and thought._

"Griffin the guitarist. Yeah, it could work."  
  
"So just like that is how you two met one another?" Haru asked, stopping Griffin's words. He nodded.

"Yeah… it was just like fate stepped in and pushed us together. We spent a few months playing together, me and her. We went from street corners to night clubs and finally got up enough money to get a hotel room at this dive downtown. But for me it was heaven, I tell you. Finally off the streets and I was makin' money with Valentine. Us two became real close friends in those few months. We were always together either playing music, or eating out, or just taking a walk.

Then one day we met another street musician who was really tearing it up on the drums. His name was Lewis. Crazy guy, you could tell... well you have to be insane to lug a drum set around the city... but we introduced ourselves and he seemed keen on joining up with us…besides a drummer isn't must without the rest of the ensemble. He was totally off his rocker, but also really ready to stop living on the streets, so us two eventually became best friends down the line. It was then we knew our band wouldn't be complete until we had a bass guitar, so we put up ads here and there and held auditions for our final member. There was only one guy who really stuck out among them all. He went by the name of Joseph." Griffin's voice became dark and he squinted a bit. Haru tilted her head.

"What was so wrong with him?" She inquired. Griffin looked as if there was a bad taste in his mouth.

"If it weren't for him… well, let's just say he was mixed up in a really bad crowd from the start. His friends were the friends of all the high crime lords in the city and his record wasn't exactly clean either, but man could he play."

"Anyway, with the four of us complete we decided on our name and Marine Jazz was officially born. Valentine would write songs for us to play during the day and we'd play them at clubs and concerts during the evening hours. It was hectic, but we were surviving on a good amount of money. It turned out that the night we got a our big break was also the beginning of the end… well, for me at least."

"Joe was connected to some people who knew a guy called 'Iggy' who was a kind of Jack of all trades in the crime world. He dealed in drugs, illegal weapons, hits on people. He was a real bad guy. So this Iggy came to see one of our shows at some point or another on Joe's recommendation and he really loved it. Or I should say he really loved Valentine…

_"Nice job tonight, everyone!" Valentine cheered as they all retired to the green room. Lewis ran inside and did a flip onto the couch._

"That was a kickass show!" He said, shaking his wild black hair all over the place. He gave a hearty high five to Griffin who was sitting nearby.

"What the hell's wrong with you?" Joseph asked Griffin when he noticed that he wasn't smiling. Griffin shrugged.

"Just tired, I guess." He lied. In truth, he was suffering from his nerves. "I'm gonna go wash my face." He told everyone and went into the bathroom. It was dirty and dank inside and several insects scurried away in fear after the light had been clicked on. He sighed deeply, his heart leaping. Griffin reached into his pocket, pulled out a tiny box and flipped it open. Inside there sat a diamond ring, twinkling in the dim light. It had taken him three years to buy it… he looked at his reflection in the mirror with the utmost seriousness.

"Valentine, would you…" He choked, even when it was his own reflection talking to him. "Oh… this is not gonna work…" He told himself morosely. He put the box back into his pocket. "No, I promised myself I'd do it tonight. I'm gonna do it." His reflection nodded at him.

He stepped out with wavering confidence, hoping to whatever higher power there was that Valentine was in a good mood.

"Hey, V. Can I talk to you for a sec?" He asked her. She was powdering her face and reapplying her lipstick.

"One sec…" She told him, examining her face in the mirror. 

"_What's wrong, Griffy?" She asked without looking back at him. She was fluttering her eyelashes and posing for herself. Griffin frowned._

"I hate it when you call me that."

Valentine swiveled around, smiling seductively.

"_I know." She said shortly._

_  
Lewis was beating his drumsticks on the air and making odd sounds with his mouth, while Joseph sat by himself, looking dismal. _

"_Can we just talk in the hall for a minute?" He requested again. Valentine shrugged, looking bothered. She got up anyway and stepped out into the dirty hall, her white high heels clicking as she went._

After the door was shut behind them and they stood in the dingy darkness of the backstage hall, Valentine faced him.

"What's up?" She asked, sounding too busy to be bothered. Griffin felt all of his confidence drain away.

"Oh… it's just… Eh… we've been really good friends for a really long time, right? And I… Well, I guess I've come to think-"

"Cut to the chase, honey." She was examining her nails. Griffin was frozen.

"I… uh…" His voice was stuck. He reached into his pocket and felt the box. Valentine raised her eyebrow, waiting for him to say something impatiently.

"Hey, there she is!" A raspy voice called from the end of the dark hall. Valentine swiveled around as if she was expecting someone.

"Iggy!" She shrieked with happiness. The tall and greasy Iggy was standing at the back of the hall. Valentine clopped towards him and hugged him around the neck. Griffin felt a surge of anger overtake him.

"Oh, Griffy, I forgot! Iggy's taking me out tonight, can we talk later?" She called down the hall. Griffin nodded, feeling defeated.

"Sure…" He waved at her sadly as she went down the, arm in arm with Iggy, talking excitedly as she left Griffin with nothing but her echoes.  


"She didn't even hear you out…?" Haru sounded terribly empathetic. Griffin shook his head.

"No… she never came back that night either… She would be gone for weeks at a time after she met Iggy… and each time she came back she'd have a more prestigious gig for us. Soon after that, we were high up on the charts. Not only did we rise in fame, were making good money too."

"Did you ever find the time to propose to her…?" Haru asked. Her voice sounded curiously downbeat when she asked.

"No, I never did. I still have the ring somewhere, in fact. I didn't have the heart to sell it or throw it away. Yeah, I ran out of time with her. It wasn't long after they met that Iggy and Valentine decided to get married and it was after the wedding that she really changed. She started to get mixed up in Iggy's bad life… it started consuming her. "

"I'll never know the full extent of what she did, but I know for a fact it wasn't good. However, we all remained friends through that time and continued to play together. One of our songs was number one on the charts at one time. Yes, in those short years the Valentine I had come to love so much died and this other woman was born. I almost like to think of it that 'Anya' was the one that died and 'Valentine' was the one who killed her. But the love I had for her didn't die. I stayed by her side for years after she married Iggy, hoping that she'd realize she was just digging herself a hole that she'd never be able to come out of. It was sad really, watching her become more and more miserable. I still thought I could save her, I guess… and after all the years we'd spent together, I thought she'd pick me…

_Lewis came over and started drumming on top of Joseph's head._

_  
"Geroff!" He swatted at him. Lewis only laughed and jumped around like a monkey with a crazy black and white wig. He danced around a drummed on Griffin's back. Griffin snatched his drumsticks away from him and held them fast in his hand while smiling back._

"Give 'em back!" Lewis bellowed, pushing Griffin over playfully. The two wrestled for a moment, but Griffin won as usual.

"I'll give them back if you calm down!" He taunted Lewis.

"No way, Bro! I'm WILD, you can't tame me!" Lewis screeched and stuck out his long tongue, then shook his great head of black and bleached hair around.

"Will you two just shut up already!" Valentine commanded from where she sat. She had a miserable expression on her face.

They were all spending time in the VIP lounge at a fancy club called the 'One Eyed-Cat'. It was owned by one of Iggy's friends and they had planned to spend the night in the private rooms and play a show the next afternoon at the club.

"Jeez… Valentine, you shouldn't get angry, it doesn't suit your pretty face!" Lewis taunted, laughing. Valentine flashed him a blazing green stare and he took a quiet seat next to Griffin and spread out on the couch. She was humming a familiar tune.

"Ha, you still remember that song?" Griffin asked her. "It's been years since you last sang it… 'My Funny Valentine'…" Griffin said to her.

_  
"You remember?" Valentine's tired face lit up some. Griffin stared back at her. She could never know the wistfulness that coursed through his heart._

"How could I possibly forget?" He replied. Valentine gave him a genuine smile that died suddenly. A look of deep thought appeared on her face as if she was considering some great decision. She walked over to where Griffin sat, her hips swinging. She put her ruby red lips next to his ear and whispered into it, her hot breath tickling him.

"I sang it for you… every time…" She backed away after she spoke, staring at Griffin with her gleaming, emerald colored eyes. His heart began to beat again.

"I'll be up in my room if anyone wants me." She said, keeping her gaze on Griffin as she spoke. She lingered a bit longer, staring deeply into Griffin's eyes, then drifted off. As she passed Joseph she gave him a curt nod and he blinked back. But Griffin didn't notice it at all. His heart was still pumping painfully in his chest. He couldn't quite figure out what had just happened… but suddenly he was empowered to do the thing he'd been wanting to do ever since Valentine had announced her engagement to Iggy. Griffin stood up, feeling braver than he had in years.

"I think I'm gonna go to bed too." He grabbed his guitar and climbed the stairs to the place where the private rooms were. As he climbed the spiral stairs he told himself that he was crazy, but he couldn't stop himself. He'd been deeply in love with Valentine for seven years. Seven long years. That couldn't possibly be for nothing.

He knocked on her door softly, hoping she was still awake. There was a few moments of stillness, then her muffled voice came from behind the door.

"Who is it?"

"It's me. Can I come in for a second?" He asked her, the neck of his guitar clenched in his hand. The door's lock clicked and Valentine opened it for him. She had changed into a sleek, satin robe.

"What's up, Griffy?" She asked him, sitting down on her wide, velvet bed. Griffin stared at her, his heart overcome with longing for her.

"I… I have something for you." He told her. He couldn't believe he was actually doing this.

"Ooh, a present? What is it?" Valentine seemed excited and held out her hands expectantly. Griffin laughed dryly and sat down in a chair opposite her.

"It's a present, yeah. But not like the kind Iggy usually gives you… it's a bit different." He explained. "Just sit back for a sec."

Valentine slumped back onto her velvet comforter, looking a bit bewildered.

Griffin took some papers out from his pocket and unfolded them in his lap. He got his guitar ready and took a deep breath.

"It's a song… I… I wrote it for you." He told her shyly. Tonight of all nights he believed that it might be his moment. Maybe he could_ save Valentine from this dark world she'd fallen into. There was pink blush on her white face._

"A song…? For me?" She asked slowly.

"Yeah… Sorry if it sucks." Griffin warned her as he began to strum the soft, melodic intro. His calloused fingers scraped against the steel strings as he played.  


"Hey my love, it's you and me, the wanderin' dark and the salty sea  
Drown me in Amber 'cause you still hold the key

And after all these years, my love, you still won't let me be…"__

As Griffin sang to her with his unsure voice, all the love and longing he'd felt seemed to pour out through his music. The song he'd wrote for her, practiced to himself alone for years, dreaming of singing it for her. The moment had finally arrived.

Her face was the most beautiful mixture of immaculate sorrow and rapture. By the end of the song she was in tears. She sobbed into her hands as Griffin put down his guitar.

"Hey, don't cry! It's supposed to make you happy." Griffin told her, rushing to her side.

"Griffin!" She howled, throwing herself onto him and wailing with tears.

"Valentine…" He grabbed her by the shoulders and looked fiercely into her deep green eyes. "I love you! I've loved you since the beginning and ever since then I've wanted nothing but you." He told her, eyes blazing. She stared stunned, the tears shining on her face reflecting in the candlelight like dying stars.

"You've gotten yourself into something really bad here, V. But there's still time! Come with me, we can run away and be free from it all. I swear, Valentine, I swear to you I can save you from this… Just trust me…"

Valentine just cried harder than ever. She yanked on her smooth glossy hair and wouldn't say a word. Griffin could do nothing but watch. She swallowed and looked at him with dewy green stare. Without warning she leaped onto his chest and kissed him passionately, wrapping her arms around his body tightly. She kissed his face and neck while she wept and after a few moments, she stood up, teardrops still flowing down her face.

Griffin watched her, utterly confused.

"Griffin… I'm sorry…" Griffin felt all of the life drain from his body in an instant. She stared at him motionless for a few moments, then suddenly slapped herself hard across the face.

"Hey, what are you doing!?" Griffin exclaimed. Weeping with an air of madness, Valentine struck herself in the face over and over. She did it with vicious strength, screaming as she did so. "Hey, stop! What's wrong with you!?" Griffin tried to stop her, but she moved away from him. She pushed over a vase full of flowers that shattered on the ground, then knocked everything on her vanity to the floor.

"What the hell, Valentine!?" Griffin shouted at her. With one powerful motion, she used a broken shard of glass from the vest to rip a huge hole in the front of her robe, then threw herself to the ground and flailed about, screaming as if someone was killing her. She kept hitting herself viciously.

"Valentine, STOP!" Griffin commanded her. He got down on his knees and leaned above her, pinning her arms onto the ground by her wrists. She struggled and squirmed beneath his body, shrieking even louder.

"HELP, HELP!!" She cried out with desperation. At once the door crashed open and the shadows of four tall men fell over Griffin.

He knew exactly how it looked.

"YOU!" Iggy's voice roared from the doorway. Griffin's grip on Valentine had gone limp and she scrambled out from underneath him.

"Iggy, he tried to take advantage of me!" Valentine sobbed. There were blossoming bruises all over her face.

Griffin rose to his feet, trying frantically to explain.

"No, I didn't! I swear!! I didn't even touch her!" He protested to the three men that were now surrounding him. Griffin looked at Valentine, helpless. She was hanging onto Iggy's strong arm, looking as if she might be sick at anytime. Her eyes pleaded with Griffin's.

'I'm sorry…' They seemed to say feebly.

"Wait, get away from him!" Iggy shouted, waving his goons out of the way. Griffin was terrified beyond all belief. All he could hear was his own blood pounding madly in his ears.

"Iggy… Please… it's not how it looks…" Griffin pleaded, his hands clasped together as if praying. Iggy looked at Griffin with a snarl on his face, but remained still for a few moments. Griffin was panting, overwhelmed with fear and panic. Without warning, Iggy punched Griffin with a blinding force square in the nose. Griffin was thrown over backwards as he heard the bones in his face crack and shatter. Blood exploded out from his wound and stained Griffin's mustache and face. He howled in anguish as he rolled about on the floor, consumed with pain.

"You think you can rape my wife!?" He screamed into Griffin's ear, split flecks shooting out. He kicked Griffin hard in the back.

"Iggy!" Valentine shrieked.

"Get her the fuck outta here."

Iggy yanked Griffin from the ground and threw him against the wall. He threw his fists into Griffin's rib cage over and over without wasting a second. Griffin choked for breath, and fell to the floor. He felt like he was desperately trying to breath through a tiny straw. Every inch of him was on fire. Blood was issuing from his nose, creating a deep red puddle on the carpet.

"You make me sick, you creep." Iggy yelled at him first. He then spit on Griffin's crumpled form.

"Get this trash out of here. Make sure he doesn't wake up." Iggy shouted orders at some men in the hall. Strong arms pulled Griffin, bleeding and enveloped in excruciating pain, up onto his feet. He was completley broken.

"Wait…" Iggy stopped in the doorway, he had something long in his hands. He swung around and looked at Griffin with sadistic pleasure. Griffin could see no it was an iron rod. A crazed look appeared in his eye and he pulled it back and swung it with terrible force into Griffin's shin. Blood… splintered bone… blinding pain…

A tear rolled down Haru's cheek.

"You can't be serious…" She breathed, looking stunned. Griffin nodded to her.

"It's true. Every word. I still remember how it felt…." He recalled the feeling of broken glass trapped inside his body with a grimace. "It's an absolute miracle that I survived that night. I don't even remember most of what happened after that… I remember being tossed into some alley with my guitar… I remember waiting to die… begging for death to come… But it never did.

"Eventually, someone came and stuffed me into the trunk of a car and we drove off. I couldn't tell you how long it actually was, but it felt like years until they opened up.

"It was Lewis…

_He broke into tears when he saw Griffin gasping for life in the trunk of the car._

"Griffin… what the hell, man…" Lewis wailed.

"Lewis…" Griffin choked, trying to sit up, his entire body shaking with sharp, biting pain. "It was…. It was a set up…" He sputter, blood issuing slightly from his mouth.

"Don't talk buddy… Don't try and talk. They think I'm gonna bury you off in the woods. Listen, if Iggy ever knows about this… I'm dead, you hear me? Can you hear me, Griffin!?" Lewis shouted at him. Griffin felt his life bleeding out of him.

"Oh Goddess… Oh Jeez… I-I…. Griffin I brought you home! Here, see Forget-Me-Not Valley, right? I-it took forever to find it… sorry…" He pulled Griffin up from the trunk. Griffin screamed in utter torment. Every inch he moved was like death creeping up in vicious electric shocked. Yellow light flooded into his eyes.

"Who's there? …. Oh gracious, get him inside at once! There isn't much time!"  
  
….And that's all I remember…" Griffin told Haru, "I woke up a week later, barely alive. Dr. Hardy had given me some kind of emergency surgery and saved my life. After that he had to re-break all the bone that had been broken and set them right again. He fixed it all but my nose. It's been crooked ever since that time."

Haru's hands were over her mouth. She looked utterly horrified. Griffin laughed dryly.

"You think that's bad? Oh, just wait until you hear this…" It was hard to stop now that he'd almost reached the end. Griffin was feeling a masochistic sense of pride. "As soon as I recovered, I expected to see my Grandfather waiting for my return at the bar…" Griffin shook his head. He could feel the pain of the loss even now. "He died a year after I left… his bar was in shambles… he died thinking he dream would never come true… he died thinking I hated him." Griffin spoke, his voice filled with deep sorrow.

"And do you know what the 'cherry-on-top' to this whole miserable story is?" Griffin began to sound indignantly angered. "That Valentine… She stole my song and sang it herself… she copied off the sheet music I'd left in that room and told the world she'd written it. Top of the fucking charts! Everyone's favorite song, 'Drown Me in Amber'. Written by none other than Marine Jazz's own beloved singer, Valentine…"


	15. Defeat

Chapter 15

**Defeat**

"Well…. I guess I should probably get going, huh?" Griffin said softly. Haru was still looking stunned. She didn't even hear his question. When she spoke her voice was full of turmoil.

"…How can you just live with that? Doesn't your heart hurt everyday…? If the person I love… if he did that to me… I don't know if I could even live my life."

Griffin felt a little queasy when she spoke of the person that she loved. Was this to say there was someone? Or was it just a figure of speech? He processed the question for a moment, then replied to her.

"Well… at first it was really hard to live and work on my own… There was a lot of fear and anxiety that bothered me back then… but it's been almost fourteen years, now. I've… forced myself to forget about a whole lot of it… And that was doing fine until Valentine decided to show up again…"

"Why is she back…? What does she want from you…?" Haru inquired. Griffin smiled at her with respect. Haru was a smart girl.

"I'm not sure… but I can tell you one thing… it's no coincidence. I'm surprised that Iggy hasn't sent someone to do me in… they all thought I've been dead and now here I am. I know enough about the two of them to put them away for life if I decided to testify. So why haven't they acted upon it? And further more… how did they find me?"

Haru began to look pale. Even though it was nearing dawn now and they had both been pushed to their limits, she was still alert with concern.

"Griffin… I don't want you to get hurt." Haru sounded delicate and vulnerable, as if her most dreaded fears had shown themselves. Griffin felt a terrible mixture of joy and despair when he heard he say this.

_Don't say things like that, Haru. The more I want you to love me, the more it hurts… It would be so much easier if you hated me…  
_  
Griffin pulled himself together some and thought of something to say.

"Don't worry, I-" He choked and coughed unexpectedly. His throat felt raw and painful from speaking and being out in the freezing rain. "Aggh, sorry… I must be getting sick from all that gallivanting around in the storm."

"Then there's no way I'm going to let you go back out in it!" Haru stood up unexpectedly, looking almost scolding. "I can't believe I put you through so much in one night… Of course you'd be feeling sick…" She looked guilty. Griffin tried to stop her from getting worked up.

"No, don't feel bad…"

"No way, I insist you stay here and rest for tonight… well, what's left of it anyway. It's all my fault for doing this, so it's the least I can do." She said with affirm. Haru looked incredibly steadfast, but Griffin sort of felt an intense shyness take him over.

"S-stay here!? I can't do that! It'd be so much trouble to you… and doesn't it seem suspicious if I'm here all night? Muffy's going to ask… erm… strange questions." Griffin protested. He was sure his face had turned bright red. Haru shook her head again and pulled Griffin to his feet.

"I'll never forgive myself if my friend catches a terrible illness because of my childish behavior. You really should just stay… don't worry, I'll tell Muffy exactly what happened so she doesn't bug you about it." Haru push Griffin onto her bed. He was feeling terribly awkward, but secretly happy that she was worried for his health.

"I feel like I'm intruding and bothering you… you've got work a-and…"

"Shh… just go to sleep. It's been a rough night. I'm fine with sleeping on the floor anyway! I used to do it every night when I lived with Akira in Mineral Town, so I'm pretty much used to it."

"Haru… I couldn't…"

She gave him a fierce look that there was absolutely no arguing with.

A while later Haru was curled up in a sort of makeshift nest of blankets and pillows beside the bed. Griffin was too tired to care at this point. Every inch of his body ached and he had started to get a pounding headache.

Out of the fragile, fading darkness the rain eventually slowed to a light drizzle as the sun rose, blocked by the clouds. Griffin was almost asleep when Haru whispered to him from a few feet away.

"Hey Griffin… Do you still love Valentine…I mean… even a little?" Her voice was cautious and barely audible, as if she were half hoping he might not hear. He considered his answer before he replied to her. He figured it would be best to tell her the honest truth.

"…No."

--

"I can't thank you enough. I'm so sorry if I troubled you at all." Griffin told Haru at the door. They had both slept well into the early evening without waking. The sky had cleared into a misty spattering of clouds and sky and the air felt moist and cool, but the rain had stopped. The damp ground was dotted with deep, murky puddles and smelled richly of soaked soil. Haru's cows were mooing impatiently for their dinner in the barn and the plants in the field had become turgid, gorged to the brim with rain water. The world seemed oddly quiet with the new absence of the crashing rain.

It was true Griffin's head was pounding, had a terrible cough, a felt completely drained, but a sense of newfound happiness seemed to have grown within him as he slept.

"Don't worry about it… I hope you feel better…" Haru told him with sympathy as she collected her farming tools in a hurry. She stepped towards her field, but turned back towards Griffin for one last moment.

"Sorry… and thanks. For everything!" She added cheerfully, running through the dew covered grass, water droplets flying like rouge diamonds through the brisk evening air.

Griffin smiled at her with a misty gaze as she went off. He sighed contentedly, his only qualm that their time together had been too short. He turned on heel and walked down the path, his head aching painfully. Griffin's thoughts were consumed with the image of them holding each other while the rain fell down all around them.

"…Felt like a dream…" He mumbled to himself, in a quietly giddy way.

"…Griffin…?" Called a voice that pulled him out of his rose-colored thoughts with a rude force. He quickly regained his normal disposition and turned around to face the voice. It was Marlin, standing by himself on the bridge over the river. He was looking bewildered.

"Marlin, what's up?" Griffin hoped that his voice sounded as normal as possible. Had Marlin seen him come out of Haru's house? Marlin walked casually over to where Griffin stood, a bland expression on his face. Griffin saw that there was a dark ring around his left eye.

"Did you just come out of Haru's house…?" Marlin asked gruffly, "I mean, I didn't even seen you go in and I've been here for a couple of hours. Did you spend qall day with her…?" Marlin's voice was incredulous. Griffin felt utterly humiliated… He knew someone would find out.

"What!? N-n-no! I wouldn't do something like that! I'm so much older than her!" Griffin waved his hands around for emphasis. He knew as soon as he spoke he sounded extremely suspicious. Marlin simply raised his eyebrow a bit.

"… I'm not accusing you of anything, bro… Just wondering, that's all…" Marlin shrugged, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

"Ahaha… Of course." Griffin laughed nervously. He knew he had to change the subject quick, so he said the first thing that came to his mind, "Errr… your eye… how did that-"

"My man of a sister punched me!" Marlin exclaimed suddenly. His blue eyes looked fiery. Griffin wondered why, but he did not have to ask. "I was only trying to protect Celia, that's all… and she just started crying for no reason at all. And when Vesta saw that, she just lashed out violently, as usual…" Marlin scoffed and fell quiet, a small bitter sneer on his face. Griffin was nonplussed.

"I… don't really understand…?" Griffin told Marlin with caution. It was obvious he was in a bad mood. Marlin sighed deeply and looked back up to Griffin.

"It's all because of that Phantom Skye."

"Phantom Skye!?" Griffin yelled, surprising even himself. His blood began to boil with anger. "I hate that lousy thief!! He stole all my money shamelessly and laughed about it! I'll ring his neck if I ever catch him."

"Yeah, well your chance is tonight. He's coming by to 'rob us blind' or so he says. And that's precisely why I was trying to protect Celia… He's some kind of psychotic rapist or something, isn't he…?" Marlin asked dubiously. Griffin knew that this wasn't true, but he wouldn't say a good thing about Skye.

"Wouldn't put it past him…" Griffin growled, "So, he's coming to your farm tonight?"

"Exactly… and Celia wanted to try and help us catch him, but there is no way I'm letting her anywhere near a dangerous thief like. Of course, she has to say that I'm the one who should be staying behind because of my condition…" He continued indignantly. Griffin remembered that Marlin had come to the valley to recover from a sickness. He'd always been weak and low on energy ever since he'd somehow contracted the illness.

"Can I help you guys catch him? I really want to make him pay…" Griffin told Marlin with gusto. Marlin perked up when he heard this.

"You're interested in helping…?" He asked with a bit of respect in his tone. Griffin nodded.

"Of course I am."

Marlin's face broke into a crooked smile. He looked suddenly very excited in his own muted way.

"Hey… listen… I've got this plan, see… Vesta and Celia thought it was crap, but I know it will work…" Griffin stopped him briefly.

"Great… can you tell me on the way to the bar? I've got a bit of a headache, I want to grab some medicine." He told Marlin, who nodded. They set off together, Marlin explaining excitedly.

"Awesome… Ok, here's what I thought. The other day I saw that crazy Daryll out in his yard with this weird sort of gun thing."

"Whoa, whoa. I'm not gonna aid in killing anybody." Griffin told Marlin straight off.

"No, it's not like that." Marlin said, shaking his head fervently, "It's kinda like a stun-gun I think… 'cept weirder. I'm pretty sure it just paralyzes people… if we can stun him long enough to tie him up, we can turn him into the cops and maybe even get a nice reward." Marlin added with gusto. They had reached the bar and opened the door. Muffy was inside frantically trying to serve the customers drinks. The back of the bar was a mess.

"Griffin!" She snarled at him as he came in, "Where on earth have you been!?" She handed a watery looking beverage to Gustafa, who looked slightly put off at the sight of it. Cody and Grant were also inside, looking more than a little anxious.

"Sorry Muffy…" Griffin realized with a shock that the bar had already been open for several hours while he'd been at Haru's house. He suddenly felt painfully guilty.

"You're crazy! Spending the night with Haru and not even letting me know! I've been trying to-"

"Ahahaha!! Funny joke, Muffy!" Griffin cried out with notable panic. Gustafa, Cody and Grant we're all shooting him odd glances. Marlin squinted a Griffin, but said nothing. "Oh, the ridiculous things she says sometimes." Griffin patted Muffy's head in a manner that was supposed to be playful. She leered up at him in a way that told him she was not pleased.

"Well, an emergency has arisen and the Blue Bar is closed today, everyone! So sorry for the inconvenience, all you drinks are on the house." He announced, feeling his face grow hot and somehow knowing it wasn't from fever. The three customers shuffled out, Gustafa and Cody murmuring about something under their breathes. Griffin pushed past Muffy and grabbed a jar of pills from the shelf. He spun off the top, tossed two in his mouth and crunched up the intensely bitter medicine.

"So you _did_ spend the night at Haru's." Marlin spoke with dry triumph. "Did anything steamy happen?" Griffin turned with a pointed finger.

"That is highly inappropriate, and Muffy there is an issue on our hands." He told Marlin shortly, then turned to her. She still looked unreadily peeved, but waited for him to speak. "Phantom Skye is coming back tonight and I need you to stay here and guard the bar."

"What? I don't want to stay here alone with all these creeps running around the valley." Muffy looked skittish, "Griffin…"

Her eyes were sparkling and wide, begging Griffin to bring her along.

"Why don't you go visit Haru and keep each other company, okay?" Muffy seemed pleased at this. She smiled with an evil glint in her eye.

"Okay, fine. I can ask her what really went on last night." She crossed her arms. Griffin had no time to battle with her. It was already getting late and he was sure Daryll wasn't going to simply let them waltz away with his invention. The possibility of capturing Skye had ignited Griffin's will. He was utterly determined not to let him slip away if he could help it.

_Besides if Skye's in jail… He won't be able to bother Haru any longer…_

Griffin locked up the bar as Muffy set out to go find Haru. He was sure by the end of the night Muffy would know his entire past as well. Best friends hardly kept anything from one another, after all. Griffin didn't feel nervous or defensive about anyone knowing now, though. It was as if Haru had drawn poison from his blood after she'd heard him out last night. The weight of countless years of keeping his secret worries out of anyone else's mind seemed to have lifted.

Griffin and Marlin walked side by side in silence, each one absorbed with the task ahead. However, when they reached Daryll's house, both of them stood static, unsure of what to say. The house was entirely made out of a shiny silver metal. Electric blue lightening rods stood at the top of it, while synthetically created bolts of lightening shot noisily from one side to the other. An array of wild-looking carnivorous plants stood twitching and swaying on a table outside his house.

"Uhh… do you think… he's inside?" Griffin did not want to go in first. Marlin swallowed and bravely stepped up to the door and knocked. It created a hollow, metallic echo. Frenetic scraping and banging sounds suddenly erupted from within and several moments later, Daryll poked his head out. His eyes were huge and bloodshot and his hair a complete mess. It looked as though he'd been shot up with several volts of electricity and a collection of dark smudges and scorch marks dotted his lab coat.

"Yes?" He snapped at them, keeping the door mostly shut.

"Uh… Marlin was wondering…"

"Griffin was wondering too!" Marlin hissed at him, trying to keep a polite smile on his face.

"Um… we were wondering… if you might possibly still be in possession of that gun that paralyzes people...?" Griffin asked, curtly, trying not to stare directly into Daryll's saucer like eyes. When Daryll heard this his lips moved with no sound for a few seconds and he waved his head around a bit.

"Trying to steal my designs….!?" He roared at them, his lower left eyelid twitching some. "Never! You won't ever get them!" He slammed the door with force in their faces. Marlin and Griffin looked at on another stunned.

"What do we do now?" Griffin asked Marlin shortly, "Just wing it tonight?" Marlin shook his head with conviction.

"No… we don't stand a chance without it. We've just gotta borrow it, that's all." Marlin's face was dead serious.

"By borrow do you mean steal…?" Griffin questioned Marlin. He knew it was wrong, and the prospect of sneaking into Daryll's house was both dangerous and terrifying, but Griffin felt a small sense of excitement somewhere deep within himself.

"No, we'll just borrow it without him knowing and give it back unharmed. I doubt he'll even miss it. We've just gotta get him out of there long enough for us to slip away with it."

"And how in the name of the Goddess do you plan to pull that off?"

--

"What's all this about? Is it a secret or something?" Flora asked as Marlin and Griffin ushered Flora to the front of Daryll's house.

"No, no secret at all. We just thought since Daryll admires you so much and you had nothing to do today that you might pay him a little visit, that's all." Marlin explained with a silver tongue. Griffin felt this entire thing was increadibly immoral, but the thought of never having to see Skye again overpowered this sense.

"What? I don't get it…" Flora was looking around dreamily as they planted her in front of the door. Her glasses were sliding down her nose as they pushed her. Marlin knocked on it several times loudly, and sprinted away, gesturing for Griffin to follow. They hid behind the thick metal fence and watched carefully. Flora looked dazedly around, trying to see where Griffin and Marlin had disappeared to, when the door slammed open with an almighty metal clang.

"I TOLD YOU I-" Daryll choked and gasped at the sight of Flora. "F-f-f-f-flora! What are you doing here!?" The pitch in his voice had gone up several octaves. Flora just stared at Daryll with a slightly open mouth and blinked. Daryll's eyes went from her to the plants she was standing near to. "Were you admiring my spiny _Nepenthes mirabilis_? I've bred an entirely new species of them, did you know."

Marlin seized his chance. He rocketed from his hiding place while Daryll's back was turned and through the open door. Griffin watched in suspended horror as Daryll continued to chat with an increasingly confused Flora. Marlin was gone for a long time it seemed. Griffin crouched behind the fences, gnawing nervously at his nails.

"Come on Marlin… Hurry up…"

What seemed like hours later Marlin darted out noiselessly from within the house, holding the contraption in his hand and looked completely and totally overwhelmed. He signaled to Griffin who rose from where he stood and walked up to Flora and Daryll.

"Flora, there you are!" He said politely to Flora. Daryll looked at Griffin with complete rage as he approached. Griffin grabbed Flora's wrist and began to drag her away. "Carter has been asking everyone where you've been."

"He has…?" Flora asked faintly, a line of worry appearing between her eyebrows. Daryll opened and closed his move silently, a look of ferocious ire on his face. They left him looking around himself in circles, still trying to register exactly what had happened. As they sped away, the device in hand, Griffin questioned Marlin's look of dire shock.

"What's the matter with you?" Marlin turned to Griffin, mouth hanging open wide and face white.

"I… I think… I think I saw a mermaid in there."

--

"Hey, I thought I told you that you couldn't come out tonight!?" Marlin shouted from beside Griffin. Celia had come out of the door and into the midnight air. She looked indignant and turned her nose up silently at Marlin. Vesta, who stood nearby Marlin like a tall tree, slapped him upside his head.

"Hey! Knock it off, Vesta!" He snarled at her.

"I have to make sure you don't get yourself injured Marlin." Celia said with as little emotion as she could muster. Marlin goggled at her.

"I don't get hurt!?" He repeated incredulously.

"Yes, precisely-"

"HEY, SHUT UP. I head something!" Vesta harshly whispered and held up her hand. Everyone stopped moving and listened for any sound they could here. It was true. There was a rustling and shifting in the crop field somewhere. After hours of waiting, could this be it.

"Let's get him!!" Vesta whispered a soft cheer to everyone and then she charged out into the fields.

"Hey, what about the plan!?" Marlin raced off after her, disappearing into the deep green darkness.

"Wait for me!" Celia went off after them. Griffin watched them go, feeling nervous. He knew that Skye wasn't going to go for a few vegetables from the field. He would most likely try and steal the seeds and money that Vesta kept in her storehouse nearby, but Griffin did not want to shout and give away his position. He stood alone in the quiet darkness and listened to their far off bickering.

After only a few seconds, a low creeping could be heard behind the store house. Griffin braced himself and hid behind the wall, waiting to pounce. True, the medicine was beginning to ware off and his headache and fever were beginning to return, but he was not going to give I at a crucial moment like this.

He saw the delicate silhouette of a tall and slender man creep around the corner and look over his shoulder. Then came the sounds of a lock being tampered with. Griffin poised himself, inching forward until Skye was just in his sight. But as he prepared to leap forward and grab Skye, an urgent, almost painful tickle poked at his throat and he had no choice but to cough.

Skye jumped nearly a mile in the air.

_Dammit… my cover's blown… might as well just go for it… _Griffin thought with disdain as he leapt out of the shadows towards the man called Phantom Skye.

"Skye!" Griffin shouted as he emerged, "Give it up! You're caught."

When Skye saw Griffin, his alert expression melted into one of relief. He even gave a low, mocking laugh.

"Mr. Bartender. We meet again." He bowed to Griffin. "I must thank you for how you saved my beautiful little angel, Haru. That was a bold move on your part, I must say." Griffin gritted his teeth, staring down Skye. He had a relaxed and coy look on his flawless face. His creamy skin seemed to pick up the moonlight with a startling radiance and his deep, sea-green eyes were like stars reflected against the ocean.

"Give me back what you stole from me or I'm gonna make you pay twice as much." Griffin warned Skye, advancing on him ominously. Skye kept backing away, looking about for an escape route. Skye merely simpered at his warning.

"Top bad I spent it all on presents for little Haru. She liked them all ever so much." He taunted. Griffin stopped, his heart thumping painfully in his chest. Skye stopped too, noticing Griffin's reaction. "What, you didn't know she's been coming to see me all this time?" He laughed outwardly in Griffin's direction.

"You…." Griffin bared his teeth, feeling angrier than he had in years, "You're a rotten liar as well as a lousy thief. Haru would never waste her time on a guy like you!"

A brief look of pure venom passed over Skye's face, but it quickly changed to one of enlightenment.

"Oh… oh wait, wait! This is just too rich…" He taunted Griffin with a wide smile and laughed with a shimmer. "Are… are you in love with Haru?" He was chortling loudly. Griffin felt his cheeks burn. He wouldn't dignify Skye with a response.

_Hurry up, Marlin_. He thought desperately. If he tried to rush Skye, Griffin was sure he'd be out run. Skye's mocking laughter was starting to get to him, however.

"No, no… wait… for real?" He sang with mirth, "An old geezer like you? You've fallen for my little Haru!? This is just too much!" Griffin slumped forward in shame as Skye doubled over, pointing a long white finger at him.

"Shut up." He murmured at Skye, his voice dangerously low. His fists were balled up tightly.

"Ahaha.. Oh no… That's the funniest thing… ahaha…" Skye's derisive laughter quickly changed to a harsh, icy tone. "Newsflash, old-timer. Haru's in love with me. Go ahead and ask her, even, you'll see soon enough. And don't even think for one second that you can put your wrinkled old hands anywhere near my little darling, got it? She's mine and I'm hers and we're going to be mar-"

Griffin could take no more. With speed and power he did not know he possessed, he sprinted at Skye and punched him square in the jaw. Skye gave a high-pitched whimper and fell over onto his back, sniveling. Griffin flew on top of him and began beating him senseless. He'd completely lost control over himself. Skye shrieked and yelped as Griffin hit him.

"Stop! Stop!" He wailed, trying to protect his bleeding face with his hands, "I'm sorry, just let me-" Griffin had stopped for a moment at Skye's pleas, but it had been a mistake. Skye had been bluffing. As soon as he seized the opportunity, Skye threw a vicious punch back at Griffin that knocked him over.

"Ha!" Skye shouted victoriously, leaping onto Griffin's chest. He planted his knees firmed onto his chest and punched Griffin over and over in the face and arms. "Pathetic… old… man… You should learn your place!" Skye spat at Griffin, punching him hard in the stomach. Griffin felt the air leave his lungs and he gasped.

"GRIFFIN!!" Vesta's loud voice boomed. With a fearsome rustling she exploded out of the crops and charged towards Skye. At the sight of Vesta's thick frame, Skye leapt off of Griffin and pranced back. Marlin came exploding out of the crop field after Vesta, stun-gun aimed and ready. Celia wasn't far behind.

"Whoops!" Marlin activated the gun which began to fire bright blue lasers off at random. One of the lasers hit Vesta in the back and she toppled over herself and landed face first in the dust right before she could get her hands on the theif.

"MARLIN, I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" She shouted into the ground, sounding muffled. By the time Griffin sat up and wiped some blood from his lip, Skye was already halfway up the mountain.

He had escaped.

Again.

"Marlin, watch out!" Celia came in from behind Marlin and snatched the automatically firing ray gun out of his hands and chucked it with enormous force into the river. It landed with a plop into the rushed waters and floated downstream never to be seen again.

"…oops…." Celia stammered, watching it float into the ocean, still firing away.

"Griffin! What happened?" Marlin shouted, noticing the state of Griffin's face. Griffin felt he didn't have the strength to answer. His mind was flooded with all kinds of miserable thoughts as he sat, beaten and bruised. Vesta began to stir from where she lay. It appeared the stunning power of the gun wasn't as strong as they imagined… or perhaps it was Vesta's girth.

"That rotten Skye was hittin' him. You all right, Griffin?" Vesta, asked, trying to examine his face. There were no serious wounds… thankfully Skye had been a bit of a weakling. Griffin nodded, feeling as if he were underwater.

"See, Marlin!? See what happens? You could've gotten hurt! Griffin's strong too… what if it had been you with your weak condition?" Celia grabbed Marlin's arm and looked up at him with her soulful gray eyes. Marlin stood, at a loss for words. He finally found his voice a few moments later.

"What if Skye had found you alone? There's no telling what dirty move he might try and pull with such a beautiful girl." Marlin protested, "I can't just sit by and let something like that happen to you, Celia!"

Celia's face turned slightly rosy.

"Marlin, I…"

"This is just what I was trying to explain. Let me be the one to protect you and love you…! I…" Marlin immediately covered his mouth with his hands. He had obviously let the 'love' part slip out.

"What was that?" Vesta chided at her brother.

"N-nothing! I don't know what you're talking about!!" Marlin dashed inside, his face beet red. Celia raced after him, yelling for him to wait.

Griffin didn't register anything of what was happening. He simply just sat on the ground. Though he had bruises and a terrible headache, the only thing that was really hurting was his heart. Vesta turned from laughing at her brother and Celia to see Griffin looking so deeply hurt.

"Hey, are you okay…?" She asked him with a gentleness she usually didn't display. Griffin stood stiffly and dusted his jeans off. He looked up at Vesta, his face mask like, preparing to give her the biggest lie he could ever remember telling.

"I'm fine."


	16. Valentine's Day

Chapter 16

**Valentine's Day**

"Aren't you hungry?"

"No."

"But you haven't eaten for like a day!" Muffy protested, chewing her dinner. She sat on the table eating the food she's gotten from Ruby by herself. Griffin lay on his bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.

"You're acting awfully weird lately… are you sure you're okay?" Muffy questioned for what was probably the hundredth time since Griffin had returned.

"I told you, I'm okay… I'm just feeling sick from being out in the rain, that's all." It was true. The cold Griffin had caught had been getting worse. He'd barely done anything besides sleep and work. There was also one other thing that was bothering him.

"You should really eat… you'll never get better if you don't." Muffy popped a wedge of potato in her mouth and smiled, relishing the taste. Ever since Skye had said those things to Griffin, he'd completely lost his appetite. It was as if food didn't seem important anymore, and even when he tried to eat, Griffin immediately felt sick. The only thing he wanted to do was sleep. He had become increasingly tired the last few days and wanted nothing more than to just lie in bed for hours and hours. Even when he awoke from a long nap, he still felt as tired as if he'd been working all day long.

"You know Haru told me about what happened to you." Muffy explained quietly, looking intently at her plate.

"I know." Griffin responded, his voice dead. He had no idea what to do with himself. He desperately wanted to ask Haru if Skye had been telling the truth and find out for sure, but if it was indeed fact… he didn't want to hear her say it. He didn't want it to be true. So he decided to stay shut up in his room at all times, hiding away from the truth.

"Aren't you upset about that…?" Muffy asked a little more bravely.

"Not really."

Muffy sighed and got up from where she was sitting. She walked over to Griffin's bed and put her face above hers, staring into his eyes with curiosity.

"…Did something happen?" She asked yet again.

"No." Griffin lied, "Just feeling sick…"

Griffin watched from his sanctum that was his bar as the seasons began to change again. Those few weeks went by at a painfully slow rate. With every leaf that fell to the browning grass, the sky became grayer and the air colder. Suddenly, everyone's breath was visible as the walked by and the air had taken on a frigid chill. Though Griffin recovered from his cold relatively soon, he still stayed inside whenever he could afford to. Whenever Haru came to the bar it was like taking a bullet.

Griffin would watch her, feeling utterly tormented about everything. There were so many questions he wanted to ask her, yet none could ever pass his lips for a variety of reasons. He had decided it was better to keep believing from afar than to live in complete despair. However, whenever he saw her walking arm in arm with Muffy or chatting with friends by the window, he immediately thought of Skye.

When the first snow of the year fell and winter had officially begun, Griffin had realized it was fear again that was controlling his life. Fear of losing Haru.. Fear of losing these warm feelings that she'd brought with her. The entirely vexing part about the entire situation is that even though it was painful to hold the idea of Haru in his mind, Griffin was helpless but to let her completely occupy all his thoughts.

One evening as the snow fell with noiseless beauty onto fresh piles on the ground and all was silent and calm throughout the entire valley, Griffin decided it would be best to get out for a little while. He took a muddled walk down to the beach, not noticing any of the scenery, completely consumed by his thoughts.

_It's just not fair… I was dead before I met you… there was nothing worth living for, but at least it was peaceful. At least it was easy. Then you have to show up out of nowhere and turn everything upside-down, Haru. You had to break down everything I'd put up…. My promises I made to never let someone have my heart… my safety net._

You tore it down and broke right into my heart… You taught me how to live again, how to feel… and you made me want more. You've woken me from such a long and dreamless sleep and breathed life into these tired bones… You let me live again.

And now you're going to take it all away.

Griffin stared out at the icy ocean from the shore and watched the waves swell and die over and over. The air bit at him and he wrapped his coat tighter around himself, feeling the cold sting. He stood, gray and lonesome, the wind batting at his long coat. His long hair, though secured in a ponytail, whipped around in the stinging wind. Tiny flecks of snow flew by, getting caught on his clothes and in his hair. But he stood fast, facing the ocean.

_All I ever wanted is all I'll never get…_ Griffin thought dismally.

He wanted to throw himself into the freezing dark waters of the churning ocean and be swallowed up and forgotten. He wanted to shout and yell and rage to the world… scream madly into nothing and have nothing answer him… but he did not.

He simply stood and watched.

After a few more minutes there was the shifting of sand behind him and another lonesome figure trod across the shore line and stood beside him, not saying a word. Her red hair shone line a fiery beacon in the world of white and blue beyond and her icy blue eyes matched wonderfully with the sea.

"Nami." Griffin said without looking at her. She stood by his side, unmoving without any sort of explanation or greeting. She merely regarded him with a gaze and went on staring out into the vast world beyond. The stone islands lay in the ever-moving waters like skeletons in a dark desert.

"Griffin… you've been around for a while." Her strong voice cut the cold and wind unexpectedly after some time. "You must have had a lot of experiences in your time, I bet."

Griffin didn't know what to say for a while.

"I suppose so." Griffin answered her, not sure what she wanted him to say. Her lips were white in the winter air and her breath blew out in front of her, white and fresh. "But it's best to be young…." He was silent for a long while. "What I'd give to be young again."

"Have you ever felt…" Nami began speaking as if she were searching for the very perfect words to describe what she meant. "Like… there's something you want so bad… and...and you've wanted it forever… and suddenly you get so close… you can see it up ahead. You can almost taste it… and then you find out that you can't have it. Have you ever felt that?"

Griffin's emotions almost burst when she spoke. It was as if she were speaking his exact inner turmoil out loud. He turned to her, his face expressing his heart for the first time in a long while.

"Yes." His voice was filled with such resounding truth and understanding that Nami's clear blue eyes moistened slightly and she turned away.

"Is that what you're feeling now?" Nami asked on, staring back out at the crashing waves. Griffin sighed. There was no point in pretending with Nami.

"Yup." He breathed, feeling as if some of the pain that was in him was suddenly flying out and casting itself across the endless expanse of sea when he uttered the word. Nami looked up at him shortly and with the same defeated look in her eye, she spoke.

"Me too."

Not much time passed before she turned around in the snow-flecked sand and walked away.

--

"Ok…. It's done!" Muffy's voice sang through the bar. Griffin walked in, looking around for whatever insanity Muffy had planned for this early in the morning.

"What's that burning smell?" He asked with a low note of panic in his voice. Muffy tutted and bustled around.

"I burned the first batch, but the others came out pretty good I think." She shuffled beside Griffin and began attending a gargantuan pile of dirty dishes that were piled high in the sink. Griffin spotted a huge basket filled with chocolates and cookies on the bar.

"What's all this for, anyway?" He was looking around trying to find an explanation. Muffy looked at him as if he might be joking.

"Uhh… Valentine's day? Heard of it?" She spoke with disbelief. Griffin felt a small shock.

"What? Already?" He checked the calendar and apparently she was correct. After Griffin had spoken with Nami on the beach a couple weeks had flown by. His depression had fleeted considerably, but he still hadn't had the heart to ask Haru what was really going on with her and Skye.

"Yes! I can't believe you didn't remember, I've been looking forward to it all year long!" Muffy hummed as she washed the plates haphazardly.

"And all these are for Akira?" Griffin marveled at her huge basket of sweets. "You're gonna make him fat!" Griffin laughed a bit at her. Muffy smiled cheerfully.

"Well, I was going to give some to you too, but seeing as how you're such a critic…"

"Since when can you bake anyway? You sure this isn't going to give him food poisoning?" Looking at her with playful skepticism. She smacked him softly with an oven mitt and put away the last of the dishes.

"Haru taught me for your information. I guess Akira taught her something, because she's got some skill in the kitchen…"

Griffin made a low, indiscernible sound and turned away. He didn't want to think of Haru on Valentine's day. It was depressing.  
"Well, just gotta wait until she gets here and then we'll be off to Mineral Town." Muffy sat down at the bar. She looked tired from all the early-morning baking, but still very excited. She was dressed in a cute, fur-lined pink coat with small furry pom-poms in the front and her glossy hair hung down in shiny waves in the front. A knock came at the door.

"Oh, that must be Haru!" Muffy sprang up to answer it.

"I gotta go.. do.. something… in there…" Griffin mumbled incoherently, retreating back into his room and closing the door behind himself. He felt that the best strategy for dealing with Haru now was avoidance.

"Hey Muffy!" Haru's cheerful voice chimed like a sweet bell into the bar. "Got all the stuff?"

"Yep, all ready to go!" Muffy chirped. Griffin smiled, enjoying how even though Muffy was a good two years older, she acted like a younger sister to Haru. Their voice suddenly became low and muffled and Griffin couldn't hear what they were talking about so excitedly.

_Women…_ He thought exasperatedly, suddenly extremely curious. Muffy gave a high giggle.

"Awww!! You're so cute, sometimes Haru! He'll be really happy, I'm sure!" Muffy was loud enough to hear that time.

_Who's he?_ Griffin thought. He was burning with the desire to know. He crept towards the door in spite of himself and listened more carefully to what they were saying.

"…tonight… later……and then …. Or maybe I should…" He caught snatches of what Haru was saying.

"No!! Listen, you should…" Muffy's voice dropped to a whisper. Griffin pressed his ear to the door, trying desperately to hear her. Whispers only. Completely inaudible. After a few more hushed moments of whispering, Griffin started to feel fed up.

_Why is she whispering anyway…?_

…She's probably trying to keep her relationship with Skye a secret… Griffin thought angrily.

"Is Griffin back there?" He heard Haru suddenly say. Griffin jumped up from where he was eavesdropping with a suppressed cry and jogged across the room. The first place he saw was the open door to the bath room, so he went straight in and shut the door. On an impulse he turned on the faucet for the bathtub and the roar of water suddenly drowned out any other noises.

He could hear the two girls talking vaguely in the next room, but nothing they said was audible.

After a couple minutes the bath was entirely filled with steaming water and Griffin had to turn it off before it would overflow. Everything beyond was silent so it was safe to assume they had left. He felt extremely childish for avoiding Haru, but knew that when he laid eyes on her his heart would begin to ache. He wanted to bypass that feeling… at least for today.

It had been a long and lonely night at the bar. The only customer all night had been Grant. The lonely man had sat in silence, quickly became intoxicated, then stumbled out into the snow. Happy laughter could be heard from the Inn where Griffin was sure Ruby was cooking a special dinner for Rock, Lumina, Nami, Sebastian and Romana.

Everyone would be spending time in tonight with their families or loved ones. Griffin wasn't even sure why he'd opened the bar in the first place, but he sat patiently behind the counter, waiting for Muffy to get back so he'd have at least a little company. But the long hours dwindled on and on in the snowy gloom of the bar.

Just when Griffin had begun to give up hope for anything happening at all, he received much more than he wanted.

The door opened unexpectedly and with a flurry of snowflakes and wind, a woman stepped in. She was dressed head to foot in a luxurious fur coat and matching hat, which made her face hard to see.

"Welcome." Griffin stood up accordingly and stepped up to the bar. "What's your poison, miss?"

The woman took off her fur hat to reveal long, glossy black locks. Griffin's heart felt as if it had been dunked into ice water. He knew who it was even before she turned her face towards him.

Lips red as rubies, Valentine smiled.

"Gin and tonic…" She said seductively, "But you know that, don't you?" She shed her large coat in one single motion and sat down at the bar. Griffin stiffly went and mixed her drink, then set it coldly in front of her. She picked it up with delicate fingers and downed the entire thing in one go.

"Surprised to see me?" Valentine asked, smiling wryly. "I thought you'd appreciate the association… today being-"

"Yeah. I got it. Hilarious." Griffin grumbled, his arms crossed. It was odd seeing her dropping in all of a sudden, but something else was strange. After he'd told Haru all about Valentine… it didn't seem as heart-wrenching to see her in person anymore.

"Ohh.. Griffy… don't be such a sourpuss. Give me another." She slid the glass towards Griffin and he filled it up again, not saying a word to her. She gazed up at him through spider-like eyelashes.

"…Still mad after all these years, huh?" She took the newly filled glass from him.

"Yeah, I am. Funny, isn't it?" He spat at her derisively. Valentine's laugh had a note of sorrow in it.

"Do you want an apology?" She sounded a bit dangerous as she wrapped her lips around the glass, her bright red lipstick still clinging to the clear glass.

"No… I just want you and your stupid Iggy to stay the hell out of my life." Griffin said shortly. Valentine looked up at him, her eyes swimming with emotion.

"You didn't hear?" Her voice was breathy. She paused for Griffin's reaction, then continued on. "Iggy's dead. He got killed in some idiot gunfight four years back. Can't say I'm too sorry, though… Another?"

Valentine raised her glass once more. Griffin knew she was just buying time. But he almost didn't want her to go… He was trying desperately to discover a clue as to what her true motive for coming back might be. Valentine caught a look at Griffin's calculating face as he mixed the gin in the glass.

"I know that look. You're wondering why I've come back here, aren't you?" Griffin put her glass back down on the counter with a click. He hated how spot-on she always was.

"Well, I'll tell you why. The honest truth is… we want you to come back to us." Valentine was suddenly very serious. She looked Griffin dead in the eye, not touching her drink. "We need you. There'll never been a guitarist like you, honey. The band is doing miserably… we can't get on without you. Won't you come back?" She pleaded to him slightly. She waited for a response but Griffin just stared at her with rage-filled eyes.

"I don't even know how you can dare to ask me something like that." He finally snapped at her. "Do you have any idea what you put me through?" He wanted to shout at her, but he kept tabs on himself.

"I know, sweetie… I know more than anyone. It was a terrible thing… I regretted it the second I did it and I've wanted nothing but to be back by your side since it happened…." She got up from the stool and walked behind the bar. "You've got to believe me, Griffin. I've… I've missed you… When I found out you were still alive, you better believe I came as quick as I could…" She sounded very convincing. Griffin just stood, slightly stunned as she draped her white arms around his neck and moved in close.

"Get off." He tried to struggle away from her, but she wouldn't let go.

"What…? I'm not attractive anymore? Have I aged that much?"

"No… I've moved onto better things." He pushed her away gently. She looked like a hurt child.

"It's that girl I saw at the wedding, isn't it?" She replied scathingly. "She's a bit tender for someone your age, don't you think, Griffy?"

They glared at one another in silence, but her angered look wore off soon after she'd last spoken. She looked at him, her eyes alert and alive even after a few drinks.

"Oh well… Can't blame me for trying, I suppose… We're staying in Mineral Town for a while… so if you change your mind… we'll be waiting, m'kay?" She put her big coat on again. After reaching into her pocket and leaving money on the counter, she stopped before exiting and looked back with hopeful eyes.

"_Stay… little Valentine… stay…  
Each day is… Valentine's day…"_

She sang the last few strains of that fateful song, blew him a sultry kiss, then stepped out of the bar and into the night. Griffin slumped into a chair behind the bar after she left. He was overwhelmed by the amount of emotion inside of him at the one moment. He tossed her lipstick branded glass into the garbage can where it shattered, then poured a tall glass of brandy for himself.

Drown me in Amber, all right. He thought as he downed the burning liquid.

He sat alone in the bar for another expanse of endless time, savoring the fiery taste of the liquor. He wanted to sit alone for the entire night, but soon enough Muffy returned.

She and Haru popped in unexpectedly in the later part of the evening. Haru was wearing a charming, fitted yellow trench coat and wore a bow in her hair.

"Griffin! We're back! Oh my gosh, we had so much fun!!" Muffy dumped her coat in the corner and rushed over to Griffin's side. "Look, look, look!!"

There was a sparkling silver necklace with a deep colored ruby set into it dangling around Muffy's neck.

"Isn't this beautiful!?" Muffy showed it proudly. "You will not believe it, but Akira commissioned it especially for me!" Muffy shook with happiness. Haru coughed from the corner loudly. Muffy's face fell slightly.

"Oh, Griffin, will you walk Haru home for me? It's so cold, and I don't want to go back out. Pretty please?"

"Oh… erm, sure I guess." He stood up and got his long gray coat off of the coat hanger. "You don't mind, right Haru?"

"Not at all." Haru smiled and they went out into the biting cold together. It was snowing heavily and the sky was very dark.

"Brrr.." Haru hugged herself and rubbed her arms. "I really need a pair of mittens…" She shivered next to Griffin. They walked alongside each other. Griffin remained quiet, feeling more defenseless than ever. He had been right all along…seeing her had made his heat ache. He knew he had to try and make a little conversation with her, in the least.

"So… was your day exciting at all?" He inquired, unable to think of anything else while the snow crunched under his feet every time he took a step.

"Not nearly as exciting as Muffy's." She said with a tone of joy, "But it was nice to taste my brother's cooking after all this time." There was an anxious tone in her voice. They walked along side each other, saying nothing and looking around in an awkward sort of way. Griffin went with her up the slope to her house, which looked like a cottage on a winter-time greeting card. He could hear her dog barking excitedly from behind the door as it heard them approach.

"Well, goodnight Haru. Hope your day was nice…" Griffin said, turning around to leave. There was the sound of snow swirling in the wind momentarily until Haru called out to Griffin again.

"Griffin, can you wait for a second?" She cried suddenly, rushing back over to him. Griffin turned to face her, slightly confused.

"What's up?" He looked down at her, his voice husky.

"Eh… I know… well…Agh." Haru stuttered slightly. The tip of her nose was pink from the cold and her eyes shifted around, snowflakes decorating her hair. Griffin put up his guard as soon as he heard her stammer. He was sure she was going to tell him about Skye at any moment… confide her longings for the thief and maybe even apologize for falling for the man that had caused him so much trouble.

She coughed and shoved her hands into her deep trench coat pockets.

"The thing is…" She started again. "Well, today's Valentine's day, right?" She finally spoke in a sentence. Griffin's heart began to thump and his breathing became shallow. He knew whatever she was going to say next wasn't going to be mundane. He braced himself.

"Y-yeah." He agreed, suddenly wondering how he looked at the moment. His hand unconsciously tried to straighten his hair.

"Well, I made this!" She wrenched her hands out of her pockets and held up a small box wrapped in pink paper and a red ribbon. "It's… it's chocolate, you know?"

"Y-yeah…" Griffin repeated his pathetic response, rooted to the spot where he stood. He couldn't react to what was happening even when he tried.

"Erm… so… it's for you… that is I made it for you. I mean… if you want it… Oh, I forgot to ask if you like chocolate… Do you like it?" Haru was suddenly very flustered and she was talking very fast. She hung on the last word, looking up at Griffin with her bright eyes gleaming like gems out of the snowy darkness. He snapped out of his stupor and beamed at Haru. His heart was racing so fast he thought it might burst at any moment.

"Oh… Yeah… I do. Th-thank you so much, Haru…. I don't know what to say..! I've never ever received a present on Valentine's day before… Thank you!"  
He gratefully took the small, delicately wrapped box from her as she giggled with joy.

"Great! I was hoping you'd like it! Thanks for walking me home, have a good night!" She said this all in a single breath, then turned, her chestnut hair glowing with the yellow light from the house's window. She then sprinted inside her house with a bounce in her step. Griffin couldn't move from where he stood. Though the night was well below zero, he felt an inexplicable warmth all over.

_Maybe… Just maybe…_


	17. A Winter Walk

Chapter 17

**A Winter Walk**

"Ready to work, Muffy?" Griffin called back to Muffy cheerily. It was heavily snowing outside and even inside it was cold enough to need a coat, but Griffin walked around setting up with energy.

"Haha… yes…" Muffy joined him in the front as he unlocked the door and awaited the first customers. Griffin turned from the stove and faced Muffy, holding a steaming mug in his hand.

"Here, I made some tea for you since it's cold today." He handed it to her, smiling broadly. Muffy smiled and thanked him, sipping the warm liquid and smiling contentedly.

"Griffin's so happy lately. I wonder what could have happened to make him like this…" Muffy wondered aloud, looking at him out of the corner of her eye.

"What? Nothing happened… you're silly." Griffin slouched back against the cabinet, smiling to himself vaguely.

"Ahh… see after nearly two years of living with you I've come to realize it's the times when you say 'nothing happened' when all the really exciting stuff happens. I know what this has to do with…"

"I do have a clue what you mean." Griffin said airily. The door swung open and a blast of cold air came in with Gustafa, Marlin and Carter.

"Oh… off of work early today, Carter?" Griffin greeted them each as they sat down.

"The snow has become too bothersome. Flora and I are freezing our hands off in the dig site… so I decided a break was best. May I have… a large brandy?" Carter placed his order and Griffin poured him some.

"Ahh… some of that tea looks real nice right about now… is that on the menu?" Gustafa noted Muffy's mug.

"Sure, sure…"

"I'll have some tea too, now that you mention it." Marlin chimed in. Griffin busied himself with fixing their orders while Muffy and them chatted idly.

"So, Marlin… Celia told me all about what happened…" Muffy sounded interested.

"What did happen?" Gustafa asked curiously.

"Ahhh… it's nothing much." Marlin said this, but his voice suggested he meant otherwise. "Well I guess you could say we're 'together'…" Marlin shrugged, looking full of himself.

"Good going, old boy!" Carter slapped him on the back. "That's the spirit, all right!"

"How did it happen?" Gustafa asked, thanking Griffin as he received his tea.

"Well… it was sort of an accident really… A slip of the tongue… I would have never had enough courage to really confess… thank the Goddess for mistakes, though." Marlin explained.

"Ahh, but if you would have said something sooner, think of all the time before you'd have had together." Gustafa wagged his finger at Marlin.

"So, you're just the kind of guy that lets a girl know right away, then?" Marlin asked.

"I guess you could say that… I've gotta make my intentions clear. Eventually… Eventually she'll understand it was meant to be." Gustafa nodded and the snow that had collected on his hat showered down onto the bar.

"I admire a man who speaks his feelings." Muffy chimed in, purposefully moving her hair aside so that her silver necklace was fully visible. No one seemed to notice, however.

"It's too stressful to think about confessing or not confessing, in my opinion. You've just got to wait for a sign, that's all." Carter said in a scholarly sort of way.

"What if your sign never comes?" Griffin asked him with a smile.

"Well, then it wasn't meant to be." Carter sounded sure.

"That's ridiculous. It's silly to keep one's feelings to oneself." Muffy retorted, smiling genially.

"Agreed. Love should be shared." Gustafa pointed at her, "See, you guys are silly in the head. Isn't that right, Griffin?"

"Ahah… I wouldn't know… I don't know the first thing about all that stuff…"

"Oh, come on. You're telling me you've never been in love?" Gustafa asked with sudden interest. "Someone your age? I can't believe it."

"Oh… I think he has." Marlin smiled a secretly and took a long drink from his cup.

"What? What are you talking about…?" Griffin started to feel that familiar sense of anxiety.

"What's that, Marlin? You know something I don't?" Gustafa's voice was full of mirth.

"Oh, yeah. I think Griffin would be mad if I said anything, though." Marlin scratched his wild black hair and gestured jauntily with his other hand.

"Yeah, he would!" Muffy giggled. "Griffin loves to remain secretive."

"Aww… that's no way to do things." Gustafa tutted, "You shouldn't keep it to yourself. If you love someone, you should let them know! Who is it anyway?" Muffy took a deep excited breath.

"Come on, you were there last time, don't you remember? It's Ha-"

"No one!" Griffin drowned out her voice with his own, "They're just being stupid.

"Ohh… yes… I remember now…" Gustafa scratched his beard.

"What…? Who was it?" Carter wanted to be in on the secret as well. Griffin frowned. What had started as something he'd wanted erase from even his own mind had now become a town rumor.

"Ahh… Enough already. It's not like anything will come out of it anyway… I'm much, much too old for her." He was feeling shy talking about his feelings with these people, but he somehow trusted them. It was almost nice to have their support.

"Too old? Nonsense!" Carter yelled. It wasn't much comfort coming from someone as old as the professor. Marlin screwed up his face in thought.

"Well, you aren't exactly spring chicken, no offense. But some girls are into that, I guess." Marlin shrugged.

"Yeah… you never know… Haru could be fine with it."

"Gustafa….!"

"Oh, so it's little Haru, eh? Well, I can't blame you. She's quite a catch." Carter added. "And, by gum, so are you old boy! Stop being so ashamed of yourself and go for her already."

"Yeah, man. Just ask her if she digs older men, or something. There's no harm in that."

"Yeah, that way you can find out for sure if you have a chance." Griffin was almost dumbstruck.

"You mean… you guys don't think less of me for… for feeling that way about someone her age?" Griffin could hardly believe his ears. Muffy was smiling at him in a 'I-told-you-so' sort of manner.

"How could we…?"

"No way, brother. Free love!" Gustafa shouted.

"I could not chastise you even for a second."

Griffin stood very still and looked out at the accepting faces of his friends. It was as if there was a dam bursting in his chest. All the emotion he'd shamefully hid from the world for fear of being mocked or scorned had suddenly bloomed into something beautiful. The weight of keeping it a secret and the stigmas he'd previously brooded over were breaking down and fading away to make room for a new, more powerful feeling that he had missed for so long.

It was hope.

"Well…well… when you say it that way…" Griffin began, blood pounding in his ears. "I guess… I guess I will ask her… if she thinks guys like me are… ok?" It was hard for him to say, but everyone smiled and cheered him on.

"Yeah, go for it! We'll be routing for you."

_I'll do it._

His friends had helped him destroy his fears. He figured then at that very moment that even if all his dreams went away with what Haru's answers could be, at least he wouldn't be alone. He'd had his friends beside him to shoulder whatever darkness was yet to come.

_I'm going to do it. _

--

Resolving to get a thing done and actually executing it were two very different things. For a few days after the talk he'd had with everyone at the bar, he'd begun scheming up ways to ask Haru the questions he wanted so desperately to know the answers to without seeming like some sort of obsessed predator.

_It's gotta be casual… but not TOO casual… otherwise it'll seem like I don't care. And we've definitely got to be alone… ugh, what if she lies to me about something? Then what?_

Eventually he couldn't take scheming any longer and decided to pay her a casual visit in which he would slip the questions in and leave unscathed. He set out early in the morning one day and went straight to her farm. He loved how it felt to be near Haru's farm where even in winter everything somehow felt so alive. Griffin felt confident and at ease when he first stepped near the ranch, but immediately was full of anxiety when he saw Haru running towards him waving.

"Griffin! What brings you over here?" She panted, her breath swirling out in an ephemeral cloud. The snow had stopped falling and had gathered in powdery white, glistening piles all over the ground. Griffin's confidence was completely lost and the suave conversations he had planned beforehand had gone with it.

"Oh… I was just taking a walk." He told her, cursing himself for being so anxious.

"Hey, I just finished up with the animals. Mind if I come along and keep you company?" She smiled hopefully.

"Sure. I was just about to ask you to come along, anyway." She hopped into step beside him and they talked about everyday things and smalltime happenings. Griffin began to feel relaxed again. Haru had a way about her that could calm anyone down. They walked over the bridge together, shivering slightly in the cold air.

"Blah… the cold weather is terrible. I miss springtime." Haru moaned a bit, "That's the season I was born in… and named after." She laughed a bit.

"I hate the cold, too. Because I was born in summer?" Griffin went along with her theory. "Do the Harvest sprites come out in winter?" He teased her a bit.

"Oh… they do, but they like the warmth an-" She suddenly caught on that he was teasing her, "Hey…You're messing with me!" She poked him playfully in the side and he laughed. She giggled too, her cheeks rosy. The wind blew cold and he shivered again, wrapping her coat tighter around herself.

"C-c-cold…." Her teeth were chattering and she blew into her hands for warmth. Then, without warning, she pushed herself close to Griffin and huddled for warmth near his shoulder.

"Ahh… you're warm." She leaned her head against him and they continued to walk along together. He felt very nervous, but exceedingly happy. This couldn't mean anything bad. They continued on happily, talking about this and that and before they knew it they had reached the waterfall. It roared down in an icy rages, spraying icy moisture into the air. They stood for a while watching it, Griffin feeling very at ease.

_Ok… now's the time to ask… just do it…_

"Hey, Haru… I've been meaning to ask you something." Griffin began, sounding relatively calm. _So far, so good…  
_  
"What is it?" Haru turned and faced him, her eyes wide and shining.

"I… I saw Skye the other night and he said some stuff…" Griffin started, but immediately stopped when Haru's expression turned dark.

"What did he say?" She was suddenly very serious.

"Well… he said that you come and see him quite often… stuff like that. I wanted to ask you… is that true?" Griffin's heart was like a twanging guitar string resonating with the note of suspended worry in the silent winter air. Haru looked into Griffin's gray-brown eyes for a long while.

"Yes. It's true."

Griffin felt the world drop out from underneath him in an instant. He wasn't sure he wanted to hear anything else.

"…But there's a reason I go to see him. I want him to try and... well give up on his bad ways, you know? I almost gave up on trying to help him, but I think I might have one more chance..."

"What do you mean?" Griffin was still feeling scared to listen, but he was too curious.

"Well… I don't want to say anything about it yet… but I have one more thing in mind that could hopefully change him for good…"

_So… this is how it was_. Griffin was sure he couldn't go any farther with this for now.

"Will you tell me what it's all about soon, Haru? I… want to know." Griffin requested.

"I promise you I'll tell you everything… very, very soon." Haru looked at him deeply, "I just have to figure something out on my own first… is that okay?" Haru asked him respectfully. Griffin had no idea what she was talking about, but he smiled anyway.

"It's fine. Take as much time as you need." He left off, his voice suddenly sounding tired again. Her answer had only proved to muddle him further. They walked the waterfall noiselessly for a long time.

"Is that the kind of man women like nowadays?" Griffin asked Haru eventually. She put a finger to her lips.

"I guess, some girls like that type. Some girls don't." She thought slowly. "I guess it depends on the girl."

"I wonder what girls think about men my age…"

"Hm? What do they think?" Haru looked slightly confused and waited for Griffin to elaborate. He was flustered when she did this.

"Ahh… it's hard for me to say…" Griffin told her gently, laughing nervously, "I mean like… are they interested…? Like… romantically…?" It was extremely difficult to ask, but Griffin felt a small sense of pride at his accomplishment.

"Well, like I said it depends on the girl."

Griffin wondered if she was playing coy, or trying to avoid saying anything truthful. He figured he'd have to be clear as he could be.

"What about you, then? What do you think, Haru?" He looked directly into the crashing waterfall, trying desperately not to catch her eye.

"Me?" She seemed taken aback, but there was an indiscernible emotion in her voice that Griffin couldn't quiet pinpoint. "Age doesn't matter to me. The only thing that is important to me… is love." Haru suddenly sounded quite romantic. Griffin's eyes snapped back to her. It seemed as if all the sounds had gone from the world except her clear, strong voice.

"…How old a person is… what they look like… what their skin color is… if they are a boy or a girl… how tall they are…. That stuff shouldn't matter. That's just on the outside. For as long as I can remember, people in my life always let the physical get in the way of what they truly want. People fall victim to social norms and can never acheive the happiness they desire... I believe that if you fall in love with someone, nothing should keep you apart… especially what's on the outside. It's the heart that really matters."

Griffin stared at Haru as she spoke, a fiery passion began burning within him. Every fiber in Griffin's being was willing him to wrap Haru in his arms and kiss her. He wanted to give her his entire self for all eternity.

He knew in that one moment that he loved Haru more than any other person he'd ever met in all his years of life and he would do anything to have her say this back. It was then that he knew he'd spend the rest of his life wanting her, regardless of whether she loved him or not. She noticed the look on his face and giggled.

"That's just what I think, anyway…" She stuck her tongue out a little and scratched at the top of her head. Griffin smiled back, powerless. His heart belonged to her, whether he liked it or not. He was lost in his thoughts as the walked back together.

_Haru… It's taken me this long to realize it… But now I know…_

Without you I'd be lost…

I've fallen for you, Haru…

I love you.


	18. Goodbye, Ghosts

Chapter 18

**Goodbye, Ghosts**

Griffin had been nervously checking the clock all day long. It was an hour from closing. He'd been waiting to close ever since he opened the shop, but it had just been too busy. However, a lull in the number of customers had begun and he began to wonder if he should close early today. He had a something important to do.

He stood alone, tapping his boot on the ground and leaning against the back wall. Then as if they Goddess were out to get him, the door opened up yet again. Nami poked her head in and looked around.

"Griffin? Is it just you tonight? Where's Muffy?" Nami asked, looking for Muffy.

"She's gone to visit her family, what's up?" Griffin saw that Nami's eyes were red and she had large dark circles underneath them. Nami stepped closer to the bar but kept her eyes on her shoes.

"I came here tonight…to say goodbye. I wish Muffy could be here… I'm going to…I'm going to m-miss…" Nami's cool composure broke and threw her hands over her face and dropped to her knees.

"Whoa, whoa! What's the matter!?" Griffin swung around to the other side of the bar and knelt beside Nami.

"I'm leaving tonight…" Her blue eyes peeked out from past her hands, tiny teardrops clinging to her eyelashes. "I'm totally broke…and I'm going back home for good…" She explained, taking a few sorrowful breaths. Griffin suddenly understood their previous conversation on the beach. Nami had been traveling all her life to find the perfect place for her. And now that she had found it she couldn't stay.

"Come on, sit down…" Griffin kindly pulled her from the ground and ushered her into a stool. He poured her a drink.

"It's on the house…" He told her with sympathy. She looked as if she might break down again, but simply thanked him quietly and took a sip of her drink.

"I'm sorry… I usually don't act like this… I'm just going to miss this place and everyone here so much… I wanted to stay here forever, but I can't ask Ruby to let me live at the Inn for free… I just couldn't." Nami shrugged, sniffing lightly.

"I'm sorry to hear that…"

They were quiet for a while, the gray gloom settling around the bar. Nami kept sighing and eventually her drink was gone and she stood up.

"I guess I'll walk you out." Griffin opened the door for her and they ventured out together. Nami took a few steps forward and sighed deeply.

"I won't forget you or Muffy, Griffin. Will you tell Muffy that for me?" Nami's expression was as emotionless and distant as ever. Griffin smiled in a melancholy sort of way. It was going to be hard to imagine they Valley without Nami there, she had truly become one of them.

"Sure, I will… We'll be waiting for you to come back, one day."

"So long…" Nami turned, her bag over her shoulder and began to walk away slowly, looking up with dewy eyes at the snow covered trees.

"Wait! Wait, Nami!" A voice suddenly split the night and from behind the bar came Gustafa, his hat bouncing madly as he ran. It looked as though her were completely out of breath. Griffin watched him chase her with interest, wondering what he was going to do. He caught up with her and she stopped and waited until he caught his breath.

"Nami… you can't go… you can't." Gustafa gasped. His purple sunglasses were sliding down his nose, revealing his bright blue eyes.

"Gustafa…?" Nami was a little stunned.

"Nami… please don't go. I want you to stay here." Gustafa pleaded, pushing his glasses back up his nose. Nami's brow furrowed.

"I have no more money. I can't burden Ruby like that, it wouldn't be right after all she did for me." Nami explained, looking hardened.

"What if… what if there was a way for you to live here without paying anything? Would you stay?"

"What? What are you saying?" Nami was suddenly fervently hopeful. Gustafa dropped to his knees before her and clasped his hands together as if he was begging. Nami looked extremely embarrassed. "What are you doing!?"

"Nami, please… If you leave this place my heart will be broken and I'll have to search the world to come find you again. Please come live with me… I promise you you won't regret it…"

"What!? Live with you…!?" Nami exclaimed, the color of her face almost matching her hair.

"Please… All my life I thought I've been searching for the perfect place for me… but I was wrong about that… nowhere felt right because none of the other places had you. Please… Please…" Gustafa begged her. Nami covered her mouth with one hand and closed her eyes, overcome with emotion.

"Gustafa… get up…" She whispered, pulling him to his feet. He was staring at her with a dire urgency, his hands still clasped. Nami gave him a loving smile and put a hand on his shoulder. "Come on… let's go home, then."

Griffin smiled as he watched them walk away together, Gustafa with his arm protectively around Nami. So it wasn't goodbye after all.  
And… it had finally reached closing time. He was ready to do what he'd promised himself, now filled with confidence from watching Gustafa and Nami.

_This is it…_

Griffin turned back to the front door and locked it. Above, the stars were twinkling in the clear winter sky, the heaps of snow glistening off of their gentle light. Usually, he had a small sense of worry when leaving the bar at night, but since Muffy was out of town he did not experience it.  
She had left for the city to visit her parents for the Star Night festival. She'd trotted off earlier that morning to catch a boat from Mineral Town to the city, calling back to Griffin that she be back in two day's time. Griffin had seized this opportunity to act.

It had been some time since he had realized the degree of his feelings for Haru and day by day it was becoming more unbearable. The thought that Skye could be up to anything was tormenting him and the wish to tell Haru all he felt grew stronger day by day. Muffy leaving had given him a sort of impromptu inspiration. He decided with finality as he saw Muffy move away that he would confess his feelings to Haru that very night. Muffy would be away from the bar if Haru wanted to talk in private somewhere besides her home, and there would be no suspicious questions.

It was an unreal feeling as he walked away from his bar in the clear cold night. There weren't any sounds but the steady crunching of snow under Griffin's feet. The entire day at work he'd been absentminded and jumpy. For a while, he wasn't sure if he wanted to go through with it at all, but he had a feeling his heart might burst if he waited any longer.  
He would either have her, or be content with loving her from afar. There was to be no more gray areas… no more waiting.

As Griffin walked up to the farm he noted that Haru's lights were off. It was quite late at night, but he wanted to make sure she was definitely asleep before he gave up and waited until tomorrow. He went straight up to her window and peered in a little to see if she was in bed or not.  
But there was no one. The house was completely vacant. Griffin stared in some confusion, then guessed she might be out for a walk before she went to bed. With a quick look to see if Haru wasn't in the fields or barns, he left the farm, feeling all the more nervous.

"Where could she be so late at night?"

Streetlamps glowed deep yellow in the night, tinting the snow nearby them. A periwinkle blue had sort of settled all around the valley and in the air.

_Guess I'll check the spring again… maybe she really is looking for Harvest Sprites…_

He laughed to himself. _Even if Haru was completely nuts… I'd still be in love with her!_

He had no idea what he was going to say if he finally found her, but he hoped that the right thing would simply occur to him when he saw her eyes.

_I want to say it to you… I want to see your face when I say it…_ Griffin's heart leapt with joy and nerves every time he thought of what he was about to do. He was feeling deliriously eager. He hoped beyond belief that she would accept his love…. How could she not? What with the clues she's been giving…

_I could get my happy end… My dream would come true… all that I ever wanted in my life… it could come true… as soon as I find her…  
_He heard far off voices up ahead the hill. It was coming from the spring up ahead… there was definitely a woman talking.

"Haru!" Griffin breathed in an excited whisper, his gray-brown eyes full of emotion. He rushed forward quietly, waiting for the sight of his Haru to come into his eyes. And then her saw her, standing by the frozen spring, wearing her yellow coat and standing up straight . There was someone else with her, but whoever it was he or she was blocked by one of the glowing crystal plants. Griffin moved up closer, trying to catch sight of who it might be. Griffin noticed that Haru had a very serious look in her eyes, as if she were about to do or say something very important. As Griffin moved around the person who Haru was talking to suddenly became visible.

Griffin's heart stopped.

_Phantom… Skye…  
_  
The cool blue colors of the night seemed to fade quickly into gray. Griffin quickly moved behind a tree and watched the two talking from a ways off. They were too far away to hear what they were saying, but he watching intently. His heart moved from a complete stand-still to beating painfully fast in a matter of seconds. His breathing was shallow and worried.

Haru was emphatically explaining something to Skye, gesturing wild.  
"Yes… yes!" He heard her say a bit loudly. Skye's face scrunched up a little and he said something inaudible. Haru shook her head briefly and then signaled for Skye to wait. She took off and opened up her rucksack and rummaged around inside for a few moments. She produced something and showed it to Skye, her face stony.  
Griffin whimpered when he saw what she was in Haru's hand.

_A….blue… feather…_

She displayed it to Skye, who looked completely shocked. Haru's eyes were brimming with emotion.

"Do you see how serious I am now!?" He could hear her shout from where he crouched. Griffin felt as if the world was turning. He tore his eyes away from the scene before him and turned his back to it, covering his face with his hands. Blood was madly pounding in his ears and everything was starting to get so cold.

"No…. no, no, no…. This… this isn't supposed to happen… no…" Griffin was in complete shock.

He couldn't be near them… he had to get away. He flew from where he crouched on the ground, the icy air stinging at his lungs. He couldn't think… His mind was a feirce white blankness, discontinuing any form of thought.

He only wanted to get inside. He had to get a place no one could find him or see him.

_This isn't happening…. This is NOT happening…_

Before he registered anything else the doorknob of the front door was in his hand. He was taking short fast breathes and shaking all over. His hands shivered violently as he unlocked the door. He was inside. The door was locked. Everything was dark.

He gripped the side of the bar, standing in complete darkness breathing very fast. He started speaking to himself frantically.

"That couldn't have happened…. It couldn't have… Haru would never marry Skye… it's impossible… it's… it's…"

Griffin collapsed on the ground, everything was numb.

_Something's wrong… that didn't happen…_

He sat for a long time against the bar, shaking madly in the darkness. He had lost the ability to feel or move. He sat for nearly an hour in complete numbness until a terrible thing finally occurred to him.

"It… it did happen… Haru just proposed to Skye… She just…."

The love and happiness that had been a calm clear lake in Griffin's heart was now a vapid, raging torrent of pain. Then it broke everywhere… everything was being torn down and destroyed.

Without warning he burst into tears. He covered his face and pulled his knees to his chest and just sobbed silently to himself. It was easier in the dark. His eyes stung terribly and his head became overrun with pain.

"Why!?" He yelled from behind his hands. "WHY!? How is this fair? What did I do to deserve this!?" He stood up, his arms shivering violently. He stomped over to the cabinet, unable to stop his tears and grabbed a bottle. He stared at his for a moment, then savagely hurled it against the wall with all the force he could muster. It exploded in a sort of tragic scream and tinkled to the floor, the smell of alcoholic fumes in the air. Griffin doubled up against the wall, pressing his forehead against the wood as the tears ran down his nose.

He stood there for a long time, filled with raw ire. He eventually got fed up and sat down again, the bar guarding him against the rest of the world. He pulled a bottle of liquor from the wall and uncorked it. He put the neck to his lips and slowly began to drink the contents. He did not know how long he sat there and drank from the bottle. He only knew the impenetrable darkness and vicious burn of alcohol in his throat. Eventually the pain that was tearing his heart to bits began to blur. He wasn't even sure where he was or what he was doing. Eventually there was nothing left in the first bottle and he reached clumsily for a second.

He could vaguely remember starting to drink the contents… but soon a darkness thicker than night passed over his eyes and wiped his mind clean. Griffin lay behind the bar all night long. Even after the sun rose, he did not wake.  
When he finally opened his eyes, the light seemed to burn them painfully. Someone had surely filled his head with glass. It was in these brief moments of being awake he'd forgotten what had happened the night before. There was only a dark suspicions that the world had ended somehow. He could just not remember how.

He turned to see the half empty bottle of rum in his hand.  
"What… how did I…" Then it all came crashing back onto him. It was like getting swallowed by a tall wave in the deep ocean. He was being pulled under the water faster and faster by dead, white hands that would not let go.

He lay motionless for a long while, occasionally sipping from the bottle to keep the pain dull. He promised himself that he would never move from this spot again. Until he heard a knock at the door.

When it first came, he didn't move at all. The second time, he wobbled to his feet and stumbled his way over to the door. The broken bottle still lay in a heap. Griffin could barely walk straight, but finally managed to get the door open. The light stung his bloodshot eyes when he opened up the door.

Standing before him was the last person he wanted to see.

"Griffin! I… Oh my… what happened to you?"

Haru stood, her hand over her mouth. Behind his headache, Griffin could feel tears trying to burn through but he bit his tongue. She would not see him cry. He couldn't answer her question, the world was spinning too fast.

"Griffin… are you drunk!?" Haru looked severely concerned and tried to catch Griffin eye.

"Whaadya wan..?" His own voice seemed far away and misty.

"You are drunk!" She looked slightly angry, "You should know better than to… What happened in here? Are you okay?" She was starting to get panicked.

"What… did you… come here…for?" The world outside was getting brighter. He wanted Haru to leave him alone and let him die. He did not want to see her in the slightest.

"I came here to tell you something, but I think you should-" Haru tried to speak but Griffin could not take it. A wave of rage come over him and he wanted to stop her before she said those terrible words that would make everything too painfully true.

"You don't have anything to tell me!" He yelled at her suddenly. She looked scared as he yelled and shrank back. "I was there last night… I know exactly what you're going to tell me!" His voice was hoarse by the time he was done. Haru's face had a shade of anxiety that changed into a nervous, half-grin. She took a deep breath.

"Y-you were there? So you know what I'm going to… to say?" Haru tried to look hopeful. She gave a pathetically nervous laugh when Griffin just glared back at her.

"Surprise!" She shrugged, looking at her shoes. "I really wanted it to be a-"

"Just get out of here!" Griffin waved her off and went to lean against the wall. He was having alot of trouble standing. Haru looked completely shaken.  
"Griffin… I… I thought you'd be happy…" Her voice was almost a whisper. She was looking at him with wide eyes. Griffin felt the wound on his hear reopen and pain shoot up his spine.

_How does she even dare…? Does she expect me to support this?_

"HOW COULD I BE HAPPY!?" He screamed at her furiously, every fiber in his being trying not to cry. He was overtaken by his rage and everything felt as if it had come undone. "How could you even think for one second… that something like that would make me happy!?"

He could not move… he could not breathe… He just wanted Haru to go… An angry tear rolled down Haru's cheek like a liquid diamond as she faced Griffin, her arms shaking.

"I thought you'd understand..." She swallowed with difficulty, still staring at him. A fresh wave of pain hit him full on when he saw her anger and indignance.

"Just leave… Just go away and let me be… I can't take this… I can't handle something like that…" He told her, his voice quivering. Haru choked with tears, but she would not let herself crumble.

"F-fine… Fine…" Haru bit her bottom lip hard. She cast one last scornful look at Griffin, then slunk outside, shutting the door behind her.  
Griffin fell into a barstool and laid his head on the bar. He silently wept on the smooth surface without moving.

He knew that this was going to happen. He had learned the pain of heartbreak years ago and promised himself that he would never let himself fall into this dark and painful hole again.

_It just seemed so real… she seemed so close._

_This is what love does to people… it maybe wonderful in the start… but it will always hurt you in the end. Love will only bleed you dry until there's nothing left but a sorry shell of the person you once were.  
I was a fool to think she could love a man like me… I'm old and worthless… who could ever love a man like me?_

This was such a depressing thought that Griffin's body yearned for more alcohol. He picked up his half finished bottle and started again. He drank steadily all day, barely moving from where he sat. Around midday he'd gotten so intoxicated he became extremely ill. He wandered around the back room of his bar, reeling. Atrocious bouts of vertigo attacked him every now and then. He could not figure out why exactly he was so depressed.

Even after being sick several times, his condition did not get any better. Hours crept by in painful blurs. He passed out once in the middle of the floor and slept until late at night. When he awoke in the middle of the night, he was in such horrible pain he could hardly move. His lungs felt constricted and he was covered in an icy sweat… But all he could do was lay paralyzed, suffering. It felt as though his insides had been cut up and the more he moved, the deeper the cuts would be.

_Where am I…?_

What happened…?

Am I dying…?

I'm probably dying…

I'm dying alone here…all by my self… drowned in amber.

He passed out again, this time for longer. When he awoke there was a face swimming in the blur that was his field of vision. There was an splitting, high pitched sound accompanied.

"Griffin! GRIFFIN WAKE UP!!" Someone was shrieking at him. His head hurt. His chest hurt… He wanted to go back to sleep.

"WAKE UP!!" He was being shaken violently. He tried to speak but only a pathetic moan came out.

"...You're alive… Goddess be thanked…" Griffin suddenly recognized the voice as Muffy's.

"Mu… Muff..eee…" He garbled, his entire body aching and stinging.

_Who put needles inside me… who did that…._ Griffin thought vaguely. Muffy was speaking, but he couldn't hear her. Suddenly he was sitting up…

Darkness.

He was in a his bed… She was trying to talk to him about something… asking him a question.

Darkness.

The light had changed. The inside of the bar was orangey with the glow of a far off sunset. Griffin was more alert, but the pain in his body seemed extremely acute. Nobody was around.

"M-muffy…" He tried to call out for her, but he couldn't raise his voice above a murmur. "Muffy…"

He was in such pain. What had happened? Why did he feel so sick? He lay in bed, weak and confused until Muffy came several minutes later. He opened his eyes and tried to talk to her. She gasped and ran to his bedside.

"You're finally awake…" Her voice was soft and sweet as she brushed his hair off of his forehead. "What in the world happened to you…? I come home to see the bar a wreck, empty bottles everywhere, broken glass, and you lying half dead on the floor."

"I… I was drinking…" Griffin whispered huskily. He could smell the strong scent of alcohol all over himself. Muffy looked a little beside herself.

"Were you trying to… kill yourself…?" She bit her finger after she'd said it. Griffin shut his eyes. Every movement was agony. He felt that during these drunken days someone had come in and cut out his heart as he lay unconscious, leaving only an empty gaping wound.

"Something like that, I guess." He admitted, to tired to lie. Muffy sobbed a little into his bed.

"Please don't say that Griffin…" She whimpered, grabbing his hand and squeezing, "Please don't leave me. It may not always seem like it, but I love you. You're my best friend… you saved me... Don't ever leave me alone…"

Darkness slowly passed over Griffin's eyes again and he faded away, feeling the grip of Muffy's hand slowly float away. The next time Griffin awoke it was night. The pain in his body seemed to have passed, but the pain in his heart remained. Everything was very still and dark as he put his feet on the ground, still shaking some.

The walls seemed to be pressing in on him.

_Haru's gone… She's gone…._

She had been a dream. A beautiful, beautiful dream. But it was time to wake up from dreams and move to reality.

_I can't stay here… I see you everywhere, my love. I feel you… I remember sweet moments when the world was right… I can't live with that sort of torment.  
_  
Griffin got up on unsure legs and began grabbing a few things. He scribbled a quick note on some paper and left it on the table, then put some of his things into a sack. He bundled up in his heavy gray coat and lastly picked up his old guitar. He took a quick look around his room, then went into the bar.

Muffy had apparently cleaned it up. The moonlight reflecting bright off of the snow lit up the bottles in a ghostly light. The specs of dust were visible, glowing white like fallen soldiers in a field of snow.

"Goodbye…" He said to the ghosts, "Goodbye."

And taking his final glimpse on his beloved bar, Griffin stepped out into the quiet world beyond. When he shut the door behind him and locked it for the last time, it was as if he were leaving a large part of himself behind, locked in safely behind that worn down door. He turned and stepped away silently into the blue night.


	19. The Hooded Man

Chapter 19

**The Hooded Man**

Mineral Town was further than Griffin had thought. He soon discovered after walking for a few minutes that he was still somewhat ill from all the alcohol he'd consumed. The walk through the snow over the mountain and down was painful in a lot of ways. He was carrying his guitar on his back like old times and it seemed like it was his only friend in the world.

In the back of his mind, something kept telling Griffin to turn around… to go back to his home.

But he couldn't… he couldn't bear seeing Haru and knowing that she loved another man so much that she was willing to marry him. Griffin wished for death at times during his walk over the mountain… but he also wished for Haru.

He wanted her so much… he wanted to hold her… to be close to her… to hear her say that she loved only him… But it was not to be…

There was only one thing for Griffin left to do.

Hours later, legs shaking and overcome with exhaustion, Griffin opened the doors to the inn in Mineral Town. Inside Doug was yawning sleepily while resting his head on the counter.

"Oh… Griffin! Odd to see you here so late. What can I do you for?" Doug sat up a little.

"Is there a woman named Valentine staying here?" Griffin asked pointedly. "I need to see her."

"Oh, yeah. She's up there in the first room at the top of the stairs. I think she's still awake, too." Doug told Griffin, looking his friend over to see what was up.

"Thanks…"

"Hey, I'm going to bed now, Griffin. Good to see you buddy…"

"Yeah…" Griffin said distantly as he climbed the stairs. Even though he hated Valentine, she would be able to get him his spot in the band back. Everything that happened in the valley would just be a dream. He ascended the staircase slowly and knocked on the door at the top.

"Who is it!?" Shrieked and angry voice.

"It's Griffin."

A gasp was heard behind the door and the sound of rushing feet. The door opened a crack and Valentine's eye shone out.

"Griffy, it IS you!" She whined with excitement and opened the door wide. She pulled him inside, quickly checked the hallway, then shut the door behind her with a snap and locked it. Putting his guitar in the corner of the room, he sighed as the heavy weight was off of him. She pushed Griffin down into a chair and sat across from him, smiling wryly. "Does this mean what I think it means…?" She asked Griffin breathlessly. He sighed.

_I cannot believe I'm agreeing to this…_

_Haru… if I could have one more day by your side..._

"Yeah… I've come to ask for my spot back, if that fine with you." Griffin said dejectedly. He thought she'd give a happy yell, but she simply leaned back in her chair and smiled perplexingly.

"This is wonderful news… would you excuse me for just a moment, my dear?" She got up from her chair and swooped out of the room for a brief moment. In a matter of a few minutes she had returned.

"So sorry, honey. Anyway… what changed your mind…?" Valentine asked, sitting again.

"Oh… just got tired of country life I guess…" Griffin knew it wouldn't fool her, but he lied anyway. She stared across the table at him for a long while.

"She broke your heart, didn't she?"

_Spot-on, as usual Valentine…_ Griffin thought dryly.

"… yeah." He shrugged, "I just got to get away…. This seemed like the only opportunity." Valentine smiled as if she had just won a game.  
"Well, you made the right choice…"

Griffin stayed silent for a long time, feeling his emotions boil up in him.

"She lead me on…then got engaged to another man…" He started, he didn't know why he was telling her. Maybe he just had to tell someone... anyone… "After I trusted her… After I confided my past in her…" Valentine grew subtly still.

"You told her what happened to you…? What… What…"

"Yes… what you did to me." Griffin's voice was bitter. Valentine's eyes were swimming again. Alot was going on in her head at the moment, Griffin could tell. He just wasn't sure what she was thinking about with such dedication. Valentine rose with grace, her midnight blue gown fluttering at her feet as she floated across the room to the desk in the corner.

"That's terrible how she did that to you, sweetie…" She said vaguely, her eyes shifting about.

"It's familiar, too." Griffin looked intently at Valentine, referencing her marriage to Iggy. Valentine didn't flinch.

"Well, that's over now… you just forget about her." Valentine rose and stepped over to her desk. "It'll be just you and me, from now on. Just like the old days." Valentine was rummaging around in the desk drawer.

"What about Lewis and Joseph?" Griffin inquired. He wanted to see Lewis so badly again. Valentine turned around very quickly, her hands leaning on the desk behind her.

"Oh… Honey… I forgot to tell you… Lewis died earlier this year." Valentine said simply.

"What!? How did he die!?" Griffin was alarmed. Valentine stood silent for a few seconds, her face unmoving.

"In an accident. It was terrible… but Joe is still around. He's staying here in Mineral Town with me, did you know?" She nodded. Griffin was too tired to care. Valentine grew closer to him. Her hands were deep inside her pockets of the coat she wore in addition to her gown. It was very cold in the room, Griffin had to admit.

"You know, Griffin… It has been such a long time… I've missed you… so, so much…" Her voice was suddenly breathy and low. She stepped up to where he sat and pulled him to his feet. He simply stood and obeyed. He didn't have any feeling left in him to push her away; it was just too exhausting. She walked right up to his chest and held him in a one armed embrace.

"I've wanted you back with me ever since you left, Griffy… I wanted to hold you like this for so long…" Her voice was soft and tender. She rocked a little from side to side, but Griffin's arms hung lamely at his side. He felt nothing.

"I'm sorry Valentine… My feelings for you died long ago…" He told her truthfully. She looked at him with large, wet eyes. She then stood up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips firmly against his. Nothing. His heart did not stir. She moved in very close and continued to kiss him, but he only stood still, waiting for her to get bored.

And as he stood motionless Valentine suddenly made a very fast movement. Her hand dove deep into her pocket and before Griffin could see what had happened, something white hot and razor sharp had been driven into his stomach.

He gasped and clutched his body and Valentine leapt back, looking insane.

"HA!" She snarled. Griffin stumbled back in pain, looking down at his body with horror. A knife's handle stuck out of his body, oozing blood.

"You… You…" Griffin stumbled back into the chair, hyperventilating and shivering in waves of pain. Valentine scurried out of the room and away suddenly, a deranged look in her eye. Griffin couldn't move… He slowly took hold of the knife's handle gently and tried to move it. Even wiggling it was complete agony.

Seconds later, Valentine returned with Joseph in tow.

"I got him!" She pointed a polished finger at Griffin, who was gasping for breath in the chair. Joseph smiled an ugly smile and approached Griffin.

"Hello, there Griffy." He drawled. He put his hand around the handle of the knife roughly, Griffin's insides screaming in pain. Valentine rushed over, panting with excitement and clapped one hand over Griffin's mouth and the other securely holding his shoulders. He struggled a bit, but when Joseph pulled the knife out with a huge force, Griffin gave a wretched scream that was muffled by Valentine's hand. Joseph's yellow and toothy grin leered back at Griffin as he tried to cover his bleeding wound with his hands. They were soon slick with his warm blood.

"No… no…" He choked, feeling lightheaded. He knew if he tried to run Joseph would stab him again.

"How's it feel to be murdered?" Joseph sneered triumphantly as he wiped the knife off on his pants. Griffin couldn't do anything. He only felt helpless terror as the two of them stared at him with sadistic interest while he bled out on the ground.

"Want me to finish him off…?" Joseph asked Valentine. She shook her head.

"No… I think I want to watch him die… Give me the knife just incase." She took the blade from Joseph, but never lifted her eyes off of Griffin. He was delirious with fear.

_I'm gonna die… I'm gonna die…_

"You'd better go get your Muffy before it gets light out…" Valentine said out loud. At first Griffin, in his state, thought she was talking to him.

"What…?" He breathed, his body shivering.

"Yeah, I'll go now." Joseph went to the corner of the room and produced a dirty green cloak from behind the bed. At the one moment everything snapped into place in an ice-cold epiphany. He had recognized the stranger who'd come to the door that one night to give Muffy her letters... Muffy thought Joseph looked farmilair in Griffin's photo because she'd seen his face when they met in Mineral Town before...

"YOU!" Griffin roared at him, "It was you all along!!"

Jospeh looked at Griffin and laughed in a high-pitched simper.

"You're stupider than I thought… I thought for sure you'd recognize me that night when I came to the door." Joseph challenged him.

"You're the one who's been threatening Muffy and Haru! You bastard…!" Griffin attempted to rise from the ground, but Joseph kicked him back so that he flew back into the chair.

"Shut it. Don't worry… I'll let Muffy know how you died…" Joseph smiled back at him again.

"Don't you touch her!!"

"Oh, Joe… that reminds me… you've got to off that little farm girl tonight, as well. Griffin told her about us." Valentine said nonchalantly, examining her nails.

"But I wanted to take my time with Muffy, Valentine!" Joseph protested. Valentine shot him a dangerous glance.

"You'll have plenty of time for that once she's been properly kidnapped. Now, just kill the farm brat and be done with it… that way no one will know." Valentine told him. He seemed to agree and went out the door dressed in his cloak. Valentine went into the bathroom and put a towel onto Griffin's wound while he seethed at her.

"No… No… Valentine… You can't do this… Please… just kill me… Not Muffy or Haru… Please, Valentine…" Griffin pleaded with her.

"Don't you dare bleed on this chair. It's enough that you've bled all over the floor and I'll ahve to clean it up...I don't want anyone suspecting anything rotten when on here. And don't worry, Joe's not going to kill Muffy tonight. He's got to have his fun for a while first." She sopped up the blood all over him, keeping the knife at ready.

Griffin nearly broke into tears. He as good as killed Haru by sharing his story with her… she was going to be murdered…

He thought with sickness of how it would happen… of how scared she would be… He thought of what was to become of poor Muffy… if he had just stayed in the bar…

_I promised to protect them..._

"NOO!" Griffin screamed as loud as he could, his wound stinging with pain, "Don't hurt them! Don't!" He wailed. Valentine slapped him hard across the face.

"You shut up or I'll slit your throat." She whispered, "You understand me?"

"Why are you doing this?" Griffin snarled at her from the chair. "What did I ever do to you…"

Valentine stood a way apart, looking shaken.

"It's because you know too much." Her face was sheet white, "I'm a famous celebrity… I am not going to jail." Griffin felt his head get light.

"What are you talking about?"

"If you ever decided to testify against me… in a court… I'd be in jail for life and people there would destroy me… they all know my face… Why couldn't you just have died that one night anyway…? That way, your girlfriends and Lewis could have stayed alive too."

"You killed Lewis?" Griffin was speechless, "How…? How could you…?"

"Oh trust me… it was a lot easier than it was killing you… the first time anyway…. This time it was easy…" Her ruby red lips smiled at him. He glared back at her.

"Why did you try and kill me the first time, anyway? All I ever did was love you…" Griffin's voice had become vulnerable. He wanted to know… if he had to die… at least he wanted to know the answers to the questions he had so long mulled over.

"That was it, though. You loving me was why I had to kill you…" Valentine's voice had aquired a sorrowful tone.

"What…?"

"It's because I loved you too, Griffin… I always loved you… I married Iggy because I wanted fame and money… I had no idea how deep I was going in… By the time I realized I could never get away from him or his friends, it was too late. I knew one day I would snap and let you love me as I had so wanted all these years… and Iggy would eventually find out and kill us both…"

Griffin was trying to keep his heart rate down for fear of loosing too much blood, but it was very hard.

"So… rather you than me, I guess." She finished.

"Valentine, you idiot…" Griffin's voice was hoarse. The truth was even more painful that he could have ever imagined. He wished he had never met her or come to the city at all... After a few more minutes of sitting with a heaving ches tin the chair, Griffin realized his wound wasn't as bad as he thought... he would be dying for a very long time.

"How did you know I was alive…? You waited thirteen years to do this?"

"Well…" Valentine sounded a little shaken up as well, "I really thought you were dead. It was only by chance we found you… Joseph had dragged us all to that stupid cooking festival back in the spring to see if he could meet Muffy again… that's when I saw you. You won the festival that day, I remember, and at first I couldn't believe my eyes… here's Griffin… risen from the dead. How could it be true? Lewis told us you were dead and buried... but I somehow suspects that he was lying... At first he didn't talk... but after some… persuasion… Lewis told us the truth… Too bad he didn't survive the ordeal…"

"So then I knew… You had to be killed. I'm already under the law's suspicions. If a detective ever found you, I'd be put away without a doubt. I won't let that happen."

Griffin's heart suddenly leapt. Valentine moved and sat down, looking tired.

"Soon this whole mess will be over… and we can just put it behind us…" She rubbed her temple, "By the way, do you want to be buried, tossed in the river, or burne-" Griffin leapt from the chair and kicked her own chair over onto the ground. She yelped a little as she toppled back. Griffin was on top of her in a second and with little struggle he's wrestled the knife out of her hands. She scrambled away on all fours, looking terrified. She was shivering with terror and cowering in the corner.

"Don't hurt me! Please!" She begged, pleading in an all too pathetic way. "Griffy… don't…" She was suddenly in tears. Griffin moved over to her, knife in hand. He got very close to her and pulled her into a choke hold. She was crying hysterically.

"Nooo!! I don't want to die!! Don't hurt me!!" He clapped a hand over her mouth and tossed the knife under the bed. She tried to scream as he applied pressure to the side of her neck, holding her tightly with his other arm. She squirmed a bit but was unconscious in a matter of minutes. Griffin hurriedly tossed her on the bed and looked around, feeling his body shiver with pain. He'd have to leave his guitar for now…

There wasn't much time.

He had to save Muffy and Haru.


	20. Akira Illuminates

Chapter 20

**Akira Illuminates**

Akira was completely startled when a knock came loudly at the door shortly after midnight. He had been writing in his diary and the sound coming out of nowhere made him jump with surprise. There was now a huge squiggly line drawn down the middle of the page. Akira open his bedside drawer quickly and placed his diary inside next to a picture of Muffy and himself standing by the Inn.

He crept warily through his dark house until her reached the door. The frantic knock came again. Akira hesitated. Lately, two suspicious people had been asking him a lot of odd questions.

"Who's there?" He called through the door.

"It's Griffin! Please, open the door." A voice called back weakly. Akira's fear quickly turned to rage. He opened the door swiftly to see Griffin, slightly hunched over and holding his stomach with his hand. He looked awfully pale.

"Akira… I need to-"

Griffin barely had time to shout before Akira brutally and without warning punched him in the face.

"You bastard! How dare you show your face here! I ought to kill you!" Akira yelled, shoving his face very close to Griffin's. Griffin was filled with complete shock.

"What's gotten into you!" Griffin yelled back, his cheek smarting as he pushed Akira away from himself with his available arm.

"You better leave before I get really mad… You have some nerve showing up here after what you did to my sister." Akira warned. He looked serious. Griffin was stunned, but he couldn't leave. He couldn't save Muffy and Haru alone, not in his state… and he needed some bandages bad… his head was already starting to feel light.

"Look, Akira… Just because I won't support your sister's decision of marrying a low-life thief doesn't give you the right to act this way. I may have spoken to her a little harshly… but I think anyone would be mad after what she did." Griffin explained calmly, "But, listen, there's-"

"What in the hell are you talking about!? And what did she ever to do you that was so bad, huh? She-"

Griffin almost spat with indignant rage.

"She led me on! She broke my heart… But none of that matters right now, listen-"

"You're crazy… my sister would never do something like that! She's been sick in bed crying her eyes out because… Oh, my God… is that blood…?" Akira stood open-mouthed and horrified, goggling at the red stain that was slowly spreading down Griffin's front. Griffin nearly cried out when he finally noticed.

"Yes, it is! Someone tried to murder me and I've only just got away… and there's a man who is going to the Valley right now who's going to kill Haru and do God knows what to Muffy… There's not much time left!"  
Griffin practically shouted at Akira. The farmer looked sick beyond all belief.

"Are you kidding me…?" He was white as a ghost.

"No, please… we need to hurry. We can sort out our differences later, come on." Griffin commanded Akira, who was starting to understand the grave situation.

"Hold on, let me get you some bandages, stay right there." Akira breathed, running at full speed back into his house. In a minute's time he'd returned with a first aid kit after slamming his door safely behind him.

"Hurry, give it here…" Griffin took it from Akira, shivering from the cold air and the pain in his side. Griffin undid his shirt quickly and examined his wound for the first time. It was deep and angry, the dark red flesh wet and glistening. Blood was slowly issuing from it. Griffin opened the small box and found a bottle of peroxide. He poured it over the gash and it seared with pain.

"Aggh… Akira… do you have a horse…?" Griffin said as he mopped up the excess blood.

"Y-yeah… but Griffin, that's a bad wound… you should see the doctor right away…"

"Go get that horse now…we may already be too late." Griffin shouted as he placed a gauze pad over the wound. He wrapped it around tightly with more gauze while Akira fetched his horse. After the bandages had been fastened, Griffin felt that it would hold him until this entire mess was over… at least that's what he hoped.

Akira rode up on his chocolate brown horse.

"Whoaa, Buster." He told the animal and it slowed, "You sure you're okay to come…?" Akira asked with a dire note in his voice. "Don't you go dying on me…" Griffin took Akira's hand and he pulled himself up on the horse behind him.

"Just get to the valley as fast as you can…"

Muffy sat in her room crying. She was curled up with her knees to her chest softly sobbing. She had never felt so alone in her entire life.

_Dear Muffy,  
I'm so sorry to do this to you… but I cannot live here any longer. I don't have the heart to write what happened to make me take my leave, but I'm sure you can get the truth out of Haru one day… But I guess all I can say is 'I'm sorry'… I'm going to miss you everyday. The bar and everything in it is yours.  
Love,  
Griffin_

Griffin's note lay at her feet. She's read it over and over for some kind of clue, but nothing seemed to fit. After first reading the note she had rushed with urgency over to Haru's house, but it was too late at night. Haru was dead asleep.

It was as if while she had gone to visit her parents someone had taken the real Griffin far away and replaced him with a look-alike. She could never remember a single instance where Griffin had gotten that drunk or would say that he wanted to commit suicide. It just wasn't like him.

_But I just don't get it… What could Haru have done that made him totally flip out like that…?_ She asked herself for the hundredth time, _I know Griffin would be terribly heartbroken if she were to somehow reject him… but that doesn't make any sense because…_

Suddenly there was a deafening crash downstairs. Muffy suddenly sat up straight with a tiny gasp. Had Griffin returned…? Had he only written that not in a drunken stupor and realized he'd made a mistake. There was another daunting crash.

"Griffin!?" Muffy shouted for where she sat, feeling the beginnings of fear, "Griffin is that you!?" She yelled after there was just silence. Loud footsteps echoed down the ladder. A creaking sound was audible suddenly. Someone was climbing the ladder.

Muffy jumped off her bed and backed into the corner…That wasn't Griffin…

"Go away!" She screamed at the floor with all her might, "Get out of here!" She stamped. She was suddenly breathing very fast and could feel the side of her neck thumping as the blood raced through her. She looked around in a terrified manner for something to protect herself with. The sounds were getting closer.

"GO AWAY!!" Muffy screamed with all her might, desperately searching through everything she owned for some kind of weapon. Suddenly the trapdoor slammed open with a huge bang and up came a hooded head. Muffy screamed in blind panic and retreated to the window in her room. She pried at the latch, trying to swing the glass open. She could not see him, but he was getting closer. She could hear a dry laugh. As she finally undid the latch she felt two strong arms close in a vice grip around her midsection and lift her painfully off the ground. She screamed at the top of her lungs, struggling madly.

She was so scared that she could barely register what was happening to her.

"QUIET!" Yelled the hooded man as she was thrown violently onto her bed. He stood beholding her shivering form as she tried to scramble away again, whimpering madly. She had never been so scared in her life. The man caught her again as she tried to slip away and pushed her up against the wall next to her bed. His hand pinned her throat to the wall, her knees resting on her pillow as she stared at his shrouded face, her great green eyes watering with pain and fear. She could barely breath.

"Shut up." He told her, his face inches from hers, "Okay?" She nodded, her throat tender and sore. He slowly removed his hand and she covered her throat with her hands, moaning in pan.

He was cornering her, kneeling beside her on the bed so that she was trapped.

"W-what do you w-want?" She managed to stammer, completely frightened out of her wits. She did not realize it, but her eyes were streaming. The man just laughed harshly again and lowered his dirty hood. Muffy gasped and covered her mouth with her hands when she saw the man's face.

"Y-you… you were… Griffin's f-friend…" She squeaked, mind swimming with terror. He gave her a yellowed, toothy grin.

"No… never his friend… I actually was one of the ones who tried to kill him… me and Valentine had this plan, see…" He started, his voice dry and scathingly.

"I know what you did to him, you pig. You deserve to burn." Muffy spit in his face bravely, knowing that she would suffer for it. Joseph yelled in rage and wiped her saliva from his face, shaking with pure wrath. He moved slowly and dangerously closer to her, so close she could feel his arid breath on her cheek. She turned away from him, but her grabbed her by the jaw with his claw like hand and forced her to face him.

He pressed his cracked and dry lips against hers and began to kiss her. Muffy felt as if she would vomit. She tried to push him away, but he pushed her down onto the bed, holding her down until she was paralyzed.

"Oh, no, no, no…" He told her softly, stroking the top of her blonde hair, "It makes everything so much worse if you struggle…But they always do the first time… later on you'll learn to just accept it…" He told her in a way that made her stomach churn with unimaginable, disturbing fear. He gave his cough-like laugh again, then with relish he bent down and licked the side of her face with his long, thin tongue. Muffy could only shut her eyes tightly and pray.

_Help me... _she thought. She thought of her Akira's face, smiling gently.

_Come save me… please…._

"Can't this thing go any faster!?" Griffin complained about the horse to Akira as they sped through the snowy mountain.

"Yeah, it can… but not through this mountainous terrain. We've just go to hold on… there's nothing we can do." Akira explained as the horse fought it's way through the rocky heights. The night was so unbearably cold and Griffin was in terrible pain, but he couldn't let that stop him. He had to find Joseph and stop him.

"Hey Griffin…" Akira said softly, the only other sound was the horses hooves.

"Yeah?" He wasn't sure what Akira wanted, but all Griffin could think of was getting Muffy and Haru to safety.

"Why would you say those terrible things to my sister…? I thought you two… well, to be honest I thought you two were in love…" Akira admitted. He didn't look back at Griffin.

"I am in love with her… I wanted her to love me more than anything in the world… I'd die for her! You know that! She was the one who-"

"Griffin…! I think there's been a terrible misunderstanding." Akira suddenly turned back, "What you were saying back at the farm made no sense to me… what do you think happened, just so we're clear…?" Griffin felt somewhat jittery. _Could this be true?_

"I went to tell Haru how I felt about her… she wasn't at home so I found her at the spring… and when I found her I saw her giving a blue feather to that thief called Phantom Skye… Then she came back the next day to try and tell me that she was engaged… so…"

"No! Don't you see? She wasn't proposing to Skye, you dolt!" Akira yelled back at Griffin. The Valley was in sight below. The houses looked like tiny toys in the distance, but they were getting closer.

"What are you talking about?" Griffin's only desire was to know. Had it been a horrible mistake? Could there be a chance? Every time his heart beat the gash on his stomach throbbed painfully.

"Griffin… Haru told me she went to tell Skye to leave her and YOU alone for good. She had been trying to change Skye for the better by being his friend, but he was only interested in courting her.She never wanted anything to do with him, but she's so sweet that she couldn't think of breaking his heart so cruelly. She went to tell Skye that she was in love with you!"

"W-what?" Griffin was nearly reduced to tears of anger and joy. Suddenly Haru's words echoed in his mind...

"_Do you see how serious I am now!?"_

How could he have been so stupid? How could he have been so cruel to Haru? He could have hit himself and sung for joy at the same time had he not been riding a horse.

"She loves me…?" Griffin repeated, "She honestly loves me?"

"Of course, she does! How could you not see it? She damn near died of sadness when you spoke to her like that… She was coming to offer you the Blue Feather that morning, don't you see?"

"Oh no… what have I done…" Griffin was overcome with grief and humiliation, "I just… I was so devastated at the thought that she'd chosen him over me… I just… I was so drunk that I…" Akira quieted him with a hand.

"That doesn't matter. What matters is that you really love her… But there is no time to loose… we've got to get there… Hurry, Buster, hurry!" Akira whipped the reigns and the horse whinnied.

_I've been such a fool… This is all my own stupid fault… If I hadn't have… Oh God, what if he kills her…_

She'll die thinking that I…

Soon, the rocky mountain leveled out and the ground became flat. Buster tore with lightening speed across the valley.

"Go to the bar! He was really impatient to get Muffy, I think he'll have gone there first. Get ready for a fight, Akira." Griffin told him in his ear, the wind whistling by them painfully. As the horse approached the bar, Akira pulled him to a halt and jumped lightly onto the ground. The front windows of the bar were smashed to bits and the door hung open on it's hinges.

"Oh no… MUFFY!" Akira shouted as he barreled inside.

"Wait, it could be a trap!" Griffin had taken a little longer getting off of the horse. He was extremely dizzy as he plunged into the darkness of the bar behind Akira. The furniture inside was overturned and some things were broken. A weak, pale light as coming from Muffy's room above.

"MUFFY, MUFFY!" Akira was shouting himself hoarse as he climbed the ladder. He looked around, and came down after a few seconds.

"What happened?" Griffin asked restlessly, clutching his stomach. Akira looked more frightened than Griffin had ever seen.

"Her room's trashed… She's gone…"


	21. The Battle Beneath the Stars

Chapter 21

**The Battle Beneath the Stars**

Muffy was tossed into the muddy, wet snow beside Haru's house. She whimpered in, trying to squirm to see what was happening. Cords had been tied around her legs, ankle, and wrists so tightly they were slowly cutting into her. There was a balled up piece of cloth fastened in her mouth so she could not scream.

Joseph walked over to Haru's front door and gave it a huge, powerful kick. The wood shook. Muffy tried to make some sort of warning noise, but it was no use. Resistance was futile.

Another forced kick and the door slammed open with an earsplitting slam. Haru screamed from inside. Muffy couldn't so anything but sit helplessly and listen at the sounds of a fierce struggle emitted from behind the swinging door.

"Ah! Ah!" Joseph emerged first, dragging a screaming Haru by her hair across the ground. She was kicking and flailing, a grimace of pain on her face. Joseph tossed her into the snow beside Muffy. When Haru got up on her elbows and saw Muffy bound and gagged she gasped in fright.

"MUFFY!" She shouted, crawling towards her. Haru's night clothes were getting damp from the snow and her hair hung lank around her face. Joseph grabbed the scruff of her pajama shirt and tugged her back. Muffy shook her head violently, screaming through her gag at Joseph.

The tall man quickly grasped Haru and brought her to her feet. SHe beat him with her fists, but she was so petite the blows just glanced off. Haru tried to struggle, but Joseph picked her lightly up from the ground and walked with her over his shoulder to the barn. What was he planning on doing?

_Please… someone help… someone's got to notice… why hasn't anyone noticed…_ Muffy prayed silently. She wanted nothing more than for it all to have been a bad dream…

She wanted to wake up and see Griffin downstairs.

_He's going to kill Haru… My friend…. Poor Haru… He'll kill her then slowly but surely destroy me._

Oh, please… let it be a dream… let it be a dream…  
  
Muffy watched Joseph from far away. He carried Haru inside the barn and tossed her down on the ground. Before she could get up he slammed the door and lifted a heavy wooden beam into the notches at the front so she couldn't escape. He walked almost bored to the side of the building where he lit a match, then turned so Muffy could see it. Tears streamed down her face as Joseph tossed the match into a pile of hay and it exploded into flames. Muffy could see the doors of the barn shaking as Haru tried to escape.

_Takakura!! Takakura live right over there... he's got to wake up... he'll notice at any moment..._ Muffy prayed, looking down at Takakura's house. The lights were all off.

In a matter of moments, the entire side of the barn was aflame and the sounds of screaming cattle and bleating sheep could be heard like an unholy chorus. Muffy couldn't bear to think of what Haru must be going through…

_Please let it end quickly… please don't let her suffer…_ Muffy was starting to feel utterly nauseated. She could only think of Haru pounding on the door, fighting for her life. Joseph strode across the field with his long thing legs and stood before Muffy. She gave him a look of pure hatred as she shivered in the melting snow.

"Ahh… my little angel… my sweet Muffy..." Joseph strokes the side of her face with a touch that made Muffy's skin crawl. She could only avert her eyes.

He pulled Muffy up and slung her over his shoulder just as he had done to Haru. He carried her over behind Haru's house where they wouldn't be seen and set her back down in the snow.

"We can watch from here… Even if someone arrives, they won't look for us here, not if the barn is burning…" Joseph told her as if she were his confidant. Muffy couldn't believe this was actually happening. The fire had spread to the roof of the barn and black smoke was beginning to issue out at an alarming rate. However, it was so late at night it was doubtful anyone would notice. Muffy closed her eyes, but the voices of the livestock could still be heard.

Muffy tried to think hard about something else. Out of the screams of the animals, there came a great panting and puffing near the entrance of the farm. Muffy's eyes snapped back open and she leaned forward with dire desperation.

As if all her prayers had been heard, Akira ran up into sight, looking around the farm frantically. Muffy could have cried with happiness. She wanted to call his name out of the darkness, but couldn't. When Griffin ran up behind him, covered in blood but alive, Muffy felt as if she had come out of dark room into blinding light.

_He's back! He came back!! _

Both Griffin and Akira were pointing with fear at the burning barn. Muffy struggled around, trying to make as much noise as possible. Joseph quietly grabbed her around the middle, frozen with surprise. Muffy fought back against his grip, flailing as much as she could with her bonds. Akira suddenly turned in their direction with a quizzical look on his face. She was saved!!

"You little bitch!" Joseph growled at her. He threw her to the ground violently. "When we get out of this, I'll make sure that you're going to hurt all over…"

Muffy stared defiantly back up at him. Akira was going to completely decimate him, she knew it. As she watched Joseph's wrathful expression she noticed that sticking out of the side of Haru's house was a bent nail...

Griffin was confused.

"What do you see?" He asked Akira.

"I thought I saw Muffy over there!" Akira went towards the house. Griffin suddenly noticed that the house had been broken into.

"Haru! Haru are you in there?" Griffin yelled into the house. He ran inside without hesitation. Haru was nowhere in sight.

"Muffy!?" Came Akira's voice from outside. "AGH!" Griffin heard Akira scream and he rushed back outside.

When he ran outside into the snow he saw Joseph holding Akira in a vicious chokehold, Akira frenetically trying to pry his head away from Joseph. Griffin looked around in complete panic. By the door he spied Haru's toolbox and he lifted the lid with as much force as he could muster and pulled out the first thing that he could grab. It was a tin watering can, but Griffin didn't stop. He knew how ruthless Joseph could be by now; every second was precious.

Griffin raced out and stepped quietly behind Joseph and brought the watering can down hard onto his head. Joseph's arms sprang away from Akira, who rolled away from him gasping. Joseph wheeled around seething with wrath. Griffin jumped back as Joseph swung at him with wicked force. Griffin kept him busy while Akira crept around behind again and landed a solid punch into the back of Joseph's spine.

Joseph howled in anger and pain then wheeled around to Akira and hit him sqaure in the jaw with his massive knuckles. Griffin heard a sickening crack as Akira stumbled back, blood issuing from his mouth. Joseph laughed, a crazed look in his yellowish eyes. He flew forward onto Akira and pushed him on the ground and began to pummel him again.

"NO!!" Griffin pushed himself forward and tried to kick Joseph away, but Joseph was too fast. He sunk his fist into the exact place where Valentine had stabbed Griffin earlier. He lay back, nearly paralyzed with anguish, watching the barn ablaze with high flames.

For a few moments there was only pain and nothing else. Griffin could only lie on the floor and let the agony control him. Suddenly there was a high-pitched scream as Muffy came bolting out from behind Haru's house, angry red lines on her wrists and ankles.

Joseph stopped driving his fists into Akira to see what was happening when Muffy sped forward and poked him with full force directly in the center of his open eye. Joseph howled and clapped a hand over his eye, falling back onto the ground. Muffy wiped a watery red liquid off her finger onto his green cloak.

"Ew, ew…" She said, disgusted. There was a moment where Griffin and Muffy just stared dumbstruck at one another, then she spoke again. "Finish him off, already!" She demanded, pointing at Joseph's writing form. Griffin scrambled to his feet, his stomach still aching in pain, stepped carefully above Joseph's body, watering can in hand. Closing his eyes and flinching, Griffin brought the watering can down with a clang on Joseph's head over and over until he stopped screaming. The smell of burning wood and smoke was heavy in the air. When Griffin opened his eyes again he saw Joseph lying on the floor, his eyes wide open and staring blankly. One had an angry red slit in it and his forehead was streaming blood into his matted hair. Muffy had fallen to her knees beside Akira's limp form, covering her ears and shutting her eyes tight. Akira was moaning, cradling his jaw gently in his hands. When Muffy saw Joseph was no longer a threat she looked up with terror into Griffin's eyes.

"HARU'S IN THERE!!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, pointing to the burning barn. Griffin's heart stopped at he looked at the burning barn. It was literally consumed by the flames.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY SO BEFORE, MUFFY!?" Griffin shouted with rage and horror. He threw the watering can down on Joseph's body and raced with all his might, "Go get help, now!!" He shouted back at her, pushing his legs to go faster. He was only halfway there…

_Hold on Haru… I'm coming!!_


	22. Into the Inferno

Chapter 22

**Into the Inferno**

Griffin skidded to a stop in front of the burning building. It was enveloped in licking flames, the skeletal remains of some of the roof visible, black and smoldered through the bright orange fire.

"Haru!! Haru!!" Griffin shouted, lifting the heavy beam from the notches in the door. The roof looked as if it might collapse at any moment. Inside the cries of the suffering animals were unbearable to listen too, "I'm nearly there, Haru!"

With all his might Griffin tossed the beam aside, his stomach spurting blood into his bandages. The beam crashed the to ground, making a heavy squelch in the slushy snow. Griffin pried open the barn doors and a wave of heat came and pushed him back, his eyes burning from the sudden blast.

"Agh!" He covered his face with his arm. Immediately a rushing of bulky four-legged creatures pushed past him in a mad rush for their lives. Griffin held the door tightly for fear of being pushed away by the stampede of creatures. When all the animals had safely run into the pasture beyond he peered with squinted eyes into the inferno beyond. Everything seemed to be glowing with flames and an intense, unearthly heat radiated out. Charred, fallen beams were all over the ground and everything seemed to be an explosion of fire. A thick blanket of smoke was floating in the air, stinging Griffin's lungs and making his eyes water.

"HARU!!" Griffin shouted with all his might. The only answer was the roar of the flames. Somewhere inside the barn was the creaking of the burning structure.

Griffin did not think of his own safety for one moment and plunged himself into the blazing barn, his only desire to find Haru alive. He could barely keep his eyes open as he walked through the building. He immediately started to sweat, the smoke so think it was choking him. He peered around, covering his nose and mouth. Where could Haru be? Had the worst already come to be true? He felt sick as he thought that he might find only charred remains.

_NO! I'm going to find her! She's going to be okay… we're going to be okay!_

Griffin finally saw Haru sitting in the water basin, only her head above the water. She completely unconscious and her head lolled to the side. She looked disturbingly still.

Griffin fought his way through the heat over to where she was, his face searing with pain from the heat. He dipped his hands into the water and plucked her out. When she was safely resting in his arms, he clutched her close and turned back towards the exit. He moved carefully forward, the strain of holding her paining his injury terribly.

"Almost there, Haru… Almost there…"

Then from above them came a heart-wrenching sound of the roof straining. Then without warning, back of the barn was suddenly collapsing in with flaming debris from the ceiling. The force of this leviathan force set off a chain reaction and the entire roof was caving down towards them, piece by piece. Beams as big as cars came crashing down, spraying dust and fragments of flaming wood into the air at a dangerous rate. Griffin ran like he never ran before, the roaring sound of the roof caving in snapping at his heels. He could see the exit… He was nearly out…

With a flying leap he tossed Haru from his arms and out of the door to safety. He slid on the ground out of the door only seconds before the whole doorway fell into bits around him. A heavy piece of burning wood landed on top his foot and pinned him painfully to the ground.

"AGH!!" He cried, trying to free his foot from the mess. Haru was lying face first in a pile of snow. For a moment she was completely still while Griffin tried desperately to free his leg from the collapse. Haru began to stir in the snow, getting up on her elbows and breathing heavily.

"W-where am I…?" She sounded drowsy but scared. She sat up on her knees and looked around. When she saw Griffin and the collapsed barn, she rose to her feet and practically exploded with shouting.

"GRIFFIN!!" She shrieked, her legs shaking as she ran to lift the wood block that was trapping Griffin. As soon as it was lifted a fraction of it away he wriggled free and crawled as far away from the smoldering mess as he could before falling into a heap in the snow. He felt like his could never move again as she stared up at the fading stars above. Haru crawled beside him and let herself drop exhausted next to him. They both lay in the wet snow, panting and thanking their stars that they were alive.

Haru sat up first and surveyed the scene.

"What in the world happened… First thing I know I'm being dragged out of bed by that creep from before… then I'm locked in the barn… then… the fire! And I jumped underwater… and then I see you and.. And…" Haru looked as if something was stuck in her throat. Griffin sat up and stared at her for a long while. She seemed to be frozen, her body stuck in the middle of a wild gesture. After a few moments, tears suddenly poured out of her eyes and she broke down. Griffin sat up, looking to comfort her and she leaned forward onto his chest.

"I was so scared!!" She wailed, holding him tightly, "I thought I was going to die… without seeing you again…!" She gasped for breath. Griffin was extremely surprised but cradled Haru in his arms gently. He stroked the top of her head while she sobbed on his shoulder.

"It's over… You're safe now…" He whispered to her softly, hugging her tighter. Those were powerful words. As they sat together in the snow, all the danger defeated, Griffin knew he would never forget this moment.

"Oh… you're hurt…" Haru noticed the huge bloodstain all over Griffin's front. He suddenly felt a little proud and very tough indeed.

"Valentine stabbed me. But I wasn't going to let that stop me from coming to save you, of course." Griffin said with an air of accomplishment in his voice. Haru, however, looked utterly miserable.

"You're terrible… How can you say things like after what you did before…? It's cruel…" She scolded him, waving her finger tearfully. Griffin was overjoyed at an opportunity to explain himself.

"Haru… It was an awful mistake… The other night… I saw you showing Skye the Blue feather at the spring and-" Griffin started, a look of recognition and understanding coming over Haru's face.

"And you thought I was proposing to him!?" She asked, shocked.

"… exactly… I was only upset because I thought you… well…"

"Yeah…?" Haru asked expectantly. It looked as if this time he was the one who would have to go out on a limb. He let all the emotion build up inside him. All the pain and torment he'd experienced… all the waiting, the wondering, the desire and the joy…

"I was heartbroken because I thought you were in love with another man!" He told her forcefully, holding her by the shoulders, "I can't live my life without you by my side, Haru! I want to be with you everyday… I want you to be the only woman in my life for as long as I live… If I can have that, then I need nothing else. I've wanted to tell you for so long… I love you! I love you so much, Haru!"

A look of pure joy and affection washed over Haru's face like the sunlight peeking out of the clouds. She smiled so genuinely and with the most amazing beauty Griffin had ever beheld. Her eyes shone brilliantly in the fading darkness.

"Griffin… you mean it…? You really mean it…?"

"I mean it more than anything. I love you… I love you!" Griffin felt tears in his eyes. It was so good to finally say it out loud. She pulled him in tightly and closed her eyes.

"I love you, too! I've loved you from the start… no one else has ever been as special to me as you have!" Her voice was bell-like and filled with a radiant happiness. He could feel her heart beating fast inside her chest. "I thought I'd never be good enough for you… I thought you consider me too immature… and too young to be worth anything…"

"I thought I was too old for you to like me…" Griffin admitted, blushing a little. Haru laughed airily, glowing with happiness. They held each other for a long time in the snow, the darkness gradually being wiped from the sky to make way for a rosy color on the horizon. Nothing else mattered to either of them anymore. They were completely happy and the world could wait.

Eventually they stood up, staring into each other's eyes and linking their hands. It was not yet dawn. Haru gave Griffin a meaningful look, her jewel-like eyes shining up through her bangs. She slowly closed her eyes and leaned close to him. He knew exactly what to do. He closed his own eyes and bent in gently... He waited for the wonderful moment where their lips would finally come together... but it didn't come...

Before he could reach her, a terrible pain seemed to split his back. A long, sharp piece of metal was shoved through his back and deep inside his body and he immediately fell to the floor and blacked out.

When Haru heard the sound and felt Griffin go limp in her arms and fall to the floor at her feet she gasped in utter shock.

Above Griffin's body stood a woman. She had a completely deranged look in her flashing green eyes as she breathed with a rythmic, guttural rasp.

Haru gulped for air, clutching her chest as she beheld her love's fallen form. He inhumanely still.

A wave of intense anger and grief swept over Haru as she looked back up into Valentine's eyes. Haru bared her teeth, seething.

"You…." Haru breathed through her teeth, staring at Valentine, who was smiling with insane victory.

"Ahaha!! I finally did it!! I killed him!!" She shrieked, sounding completely insane. "I killed Griffin!!" She taunted at Haru.

A deep red pool of blood was blossoming slowly from underneath Griffin. Haru looked at Valentine with all the hatred she could muster.

"You… fucking…. bitch…"


	23. Before Dawn

Chapter 23

**Before Dawn**

Valentine cackled back at Haru.

"Awww… Did I make the lil' country bumpkin sad…?" She taunted her in a mock-southern accent. Valentine laughed in Haru's face in a scathing manner. Haru did not hold back. She marched straight up and punched Valentine in the nose as hard as she could. Valentine fell over onto her backside and yelped in pain and her nose began to bleed.

"You… Little…!" Valentine said in disbelief, touching her upper lip and looking at the blood covering her fingers. "You actually... hit me!"

"Come and get it, you old hag." Haru told her, arms crossed over her chest. She was caught up in the most intense and passionate anger she had ever felt. She was going to tear Valentine limb from limb for what she did to Griffin… She would make her suffer for every second of pain she had caused Griffin in his entire life.

Valentine got to her feet shakily while sneering up at Haru.

"You foul precocious beast… I'll teach you to hit me!" Valentine lashed out and grabbed Haru's hair and tugged on it mercilessly. Haru winced and Valentine ripped hair from her scalp. She kicked at Valentine's body, but Valentine wouldn't stop. She slapped Haru across the face several times until her cheeks were smarting and red with pain. Haru brutally kicked Valentine to the ground and she hit the ground with a heavy thump. Haru kicked her from where she stood over and over, Valentine screaming madly and trying to beat her feet away with her bruised arms.

Valentine then caught one of Haru's feet and pulled her forward in the snow face first. She rolled on top of Haru and punched her in the lower back.

Haru screamed in blinding pain, her kidneys tender with shock from being smacked. Haru fought off Valentine easily in a few moments. Her muscles were in good shape from all the hard work on the farm, Valentine was no match for her. Valentine scratched at Haru's face with her long, sharp nails, cutting small gouges in her smooth face.

"Agh!! You horrible… pest!! You think you were the only one who loved Griffin!" Valentine spat at Haru, wrestling with her in the mud and snow.

"You don't know what love is! You're just a pathetic has-been who just ruined my life for good! And I will make… you … pay!!" Haru screamed at Valentine with all her might and grabbed onto her shoulders with a vice like grip. She beat Valentine's body harshly against the ground, her neck and head snapping back over and over. She shrieked with little yelps.

When Valentine lay moaning and bleeding on the ground, twitching in pain Haru gave her a final, vicious thump on her head and she was out cold. Haru stepped away from Valentine's limp form, panting and wiping the blood from her cheek. Even though she hated Valentine more than anyone she'd ever met she could not kill her.

Haru looked out at the horizon, breathing heavily. The sun was just coming up over the hills, brilliant beams of light shooting out over the winter valley and warming Haru.

She didn't want to turn back. She knew when she saw Griffin's body laying motionless and cold in the snow she would loose every bit of sanity she still had. After few still moments, Haru turned with the utmost grace and sadness and looked upon her love's crumpled form.

He lay broken and bleeding in the snow with a countenance that suggested he might only be sleeping. Haru strode over to him, a powerful and resonating grief gripping her entire body. She gently knelt beside him, stroking his face softly with her sore and tired hand. He was cold.

_You're gone…_

She wiped the blood delicately from his lips and pulled the jagged knife from his back and tossed it away into the snow. It was as if his eyes might flutter open at any moment…

Then it all hit her with a force no one could have withstood. All the breath left her body. It was as if a thousand icy hands were binding every inch from her. She opened her mouth and gave an inhumanely painful wail.

Tears dripping down her face at an alarming rate.

_I'll never hear you call my name again… we'll never have another morning together… My future with you has been erased… Everyday I shall walk these fields alone… I'll never laugh with you again… And every summer I'll watch the fireworks festival dreaming of out short time together…_

You're gone…  
  
_The time we were supposed to have together has been stolen away…and I couldn't give you the happiness you so deserved...  
_  
Haru laid next to Griffin's cold body, holding him tightly to her chest.

_I'll never let go… Griffin, I'll never let you go…_

I would go with you if I could, my love…  
  
It seemed that Haru aged an eternity as she lay on the ground holding Griffin. She opened her eyes and looked towards the pale, opaline sky. To think that other things mattered once…

_Where was he? Was he still around…? Or did he disappear with his body? Was he watching this…? Was he gone…?_

The sun rose above the far off mountain peaks in an intense explosion of light that momentarily blinded Haru. In the blast of white light that filled up Haru's eyes so completely, a tall and delicate silhouette suddenly took form an stepped towards her. Haru sat up and shaded her eyes, wondering who could be there.

"Haru… Haru…" Said a clear and emphatic voice. The silhouette was moving closer and stretching out it's arms. The light was suddenly ethereally bright and warming and Haru's body suddenly lost all of it's aches and pains. The gashes on her cheek closed up slowly as the figure put it's soft hands gently on Haru's face. The unearthly light faded back into the pale dawn light and the face of the Harvest Goddess became visible. She was dressed in a pale blue gossamer gown and her sea-green hair hung beautifully around her face. Her eyes were bright and blue like a clear pond on a spring morning.

"Little Haru…" Her voice was warm and comforting. Haru hugged her around the middle, crying hysterically. "You who've done so much for me… and asked for nothing in return… You who've put your heart and soul into making others happy and never caring for yourself… You who see the world's beauty and banish evil and hatred…"

Haru looked up at the Goddess with moist eyes. Her face was mask-like and her eyes had lost their sheen.

"Goddess… Do you have the power to kill people…?" She asked, her voice unwavering.

"What do you mean, Haru?" The Goddess asked her, a looked of worry passing over her perfect face. Haru let go of the Goddess and looked towards Griffin's cold body.

"There's no point in living if Griffin isn't with me… I just want to go where he went… so can you send me there? … I'm too afraid to do it myself…" She explained with resolve. She meant every word.

The Goddess knelt beside Haru, her thin gown shining with angelic beauty in the fresh morning light. She had a look of deep understanding.

"I do not have this power… and even if I did I could never strike down a soul as pure as yours, Haru…" The Goddess told her soberly. Haru broke into tears and covered her face.

"Tell me he's still out there somewhere… tell me he didn't disappear…" Haru moaned. The Goddess smiled with bittersweet sadness.

"He didn't disappear, my dear… people don't disappear when they die. They stay with their loved ones, watching their lives unfold and helping them if they can…" The Goddess put a comforting hand on Haru's arm. Haru looked up at the Goddess with breathless hope.

"…He's still right there… he hasn't even left this spot yet… he must love you very much…"

When Haru heard this it was as if her heart spilt in the deepest and most profound sorrow imaginable. Griffin was here somewhere… but she couldn't see him… hear his voice… or touch him…

The Goddess appeared to be thinking long and hard, but Haru didn't notice. She was broken and defeated. There was nothing left for her in this world.

"Haru… since he hasn't left yet this world yet… there's a small chance… Oh, but I'm really not supposed to…" She put her fingers to her lips, obviously in the middle of a serious dilemma. Haru immediately snapped back into reality.

"What!? Is there something you can do!? PLEASE… PLEASE…!!" Haru fell to the ground before the Goddess and begged with all her heart. If there was a chance... even the smallest chance that she could have Griffin back... She would do whatever it took...

The Goddess sighed and smiled a bit wryly.

"I'm going to get in a lot of trouble for this… and keep in mind it might not work…" Haru was breathless with hope as she watched the Goddess kneel next to Griffin and take a small vial out of her robes. She poured a few drops carefully on each of Griffin's wounds and stepped back.

"This is Moondrop Dew…. It can only be harvested once every thousand years in a special ritual and I'm supposed to save it for things like the world's safety… but I can't let this happen to you after all that you did for me, Haru…."

Haru gasped, her heart in her mouth. She rushed over to Griffin's side, not letting herself believe it yet. His body was still covered in blood, but the deep cuts seemed to have vanished.

For five of the most suspenseful moments of Haru's life she stayed by Griffin's side, not even daring to breathe. The Goddess watched anxiously from where she stood. Finally Haru could take it no more. She spoke out loud.

"Griffin… wake up… please wake up… Open your eyes…"

With the tiniest of movements, Griffin's eyelid fluttered and he took a short breath. Haru covered her mouth with both of her hands and her tears flowed freely. She was so overwhelmed all she could do was cry.

Slowly, Griffin opened his eyes and sat up unsurely. He put a hand to the back of his head and looked around at the light all around him. Haru was gasping for air, a huge smile on her face. Griffin returned her smile unsurely, quite unaware of what had happened.

"GRIIFFIIIIN!!" Haru screamed with joy and leapt forward onto his chest, her arms wrapping around his neck. It was an absolute miracle. She lay on top of him, crying like she never had before and calling his name over and over. Griffin was beyond confused, but still happy at seeing her joyful tears. Haru could not hold him close enough.

She pulled him up off the ground and looked into his eyes rapturously.

"Don't ever leave me again!" She commanded thickly through her tears. Griffin simply smiled back at her with a wry smile.

"I never left you for a moment… I was right here beside you."

There was no way to explain what she felt in words so she simply leaned forward and kiss Griffin passionately as the sun shone it's first full rays on both of them. The valley was alive in all of it's natural beauty. It was as if the world and the great clear sky and the ageless mountains all resonated in perfect harmony for a single moment.

Haru experienced a sense of all knowing truth as she kissed Griffin for the first time in the misty morning. This was her true love.

She drew away from him with a small giggle, blushing rosy pink with the golden sunlight dappling her soft face.

"What?" Griffin asked her gently.

"Your mustache tickles a bit…" She smiled with joy. Griffin laughed at her remark.

Suddenly from across the pasture came a voice calling loud.

"GRIFFIN! HARU!!"

Muffy and Akira were running towards them hand in hand with full speed, the waves of pale green grass splitting and rippling as they ran along. Behind them was half the village and an assortment of policemen.

Griffin and Haru gazed peacefully at one another in the pink and gold light of the dawn.

It was over.

And it had just begun.

--

**Notes from the author:**

Thank you for reading my story : ) It means the world to me that you sat through it all and read it from begining to start. It was in this story that I found my dream... with the encouragement and love that all my reader's have sent me I have decided to become a writer and one day try and publish a work for the world to read : ) And I thank you all becuase it was through you and your thoughts and inspiration that I realized my path in life...

THERE IS A SEQUEL TO THIS FIC!! XD

It is called a "A Silver Star" and the draft is currently being realsed chapter by chapter on /hmforum in the fanfics section of posting games. I will post it on as soon as I finish and edit the fic.

Once again, thank you so much for reading this and I mean it from the bottom of my heart when I say I hope you enjoyed it : )


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